Did Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers tame Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets?
After a narrow 112-110 overtime loss to the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 on Saturday, the LA Clippers bounced back with a 105-102 win on Monday to even the series and steal home-court advantage as the teams head back to Los Angeles for Game 3.
After the nail-biting affair in the playoff opener, the Clippers needed to avoid going down 2-0 in what looks to be the most closely matched first-round series in either conference — and Kawhi Leonard answered the call for LA.
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He dropped 21 points in the first half and finished with 39 points on just 19 shots. After tying his playoff career-worst with seven turnovers in Game 1, Leonard had just one miscue to five assists in Game 2 while Nikola Jokić uncharacteristically coughed it up seven times.
On the latest episode of 'The Athletic NBA Daily,' Dave DuFour and Es Baraheni were joined by Clippers beat writer Law Murray to discuss Leonard leading LA's Game 2 victory, how problematic Ivica Zubac's defense could be for Jokić going forward, what to expect from Game 3 and Law's NBA Rankings & Tiers series for the 2024-25 season.
Watch the full episode of 'NBA Daily' below or on the YouTube channel, or via the 'NBA Daily' podcast feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
(Top Photo: Kiyoshi Mio / USA Today Network via Imagn Images )
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