Kawhi Leonard heats up for 39 points and 5 assists to lead the Clippers over the Nuggets and tie the first-round series.
The LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets gave fans a memorable Game 1 in their series-opener on Saturday, and followed that up with another nail-biter on Tuesday night at Ball Arena.
Game 2 represented a chance for the Nuggets to take hold of the series with a 2-0 lead, as teams that win the first two games in the first round go on to claim the series 93.5% of the time. But Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers haven’t dropped back-to-back games since March 2 and 4, and ‘The Klaw’ made sure it stayed that way.
Leonard, coming off a 22-point outing on 9-for-15 shooting in 41 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 loss, put on a historic performance to propel his squad to the 105-102 victory. In 39 minutes of action, Leonard was nearly unstoppable with 39 points on 15-for-19 shooting (4-7 3PT, 5-5 FT) while adding three rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block.
He became the fifth player in NBA Playoff history to score 39-plus points on 78.9% from the field, joining Devin Booker (2023), Dirk Nowitzki (2011), Elton Brand (2006) and Terry Porter (1992). He’s also just one of four players to do that with five or fewer free-throw attempts (Booker in 2023, LaMarcus Aldridge in 2016, and Mike Mitchell in 1985).
“It felt like he didn’t miss a shot…his shot-making ability is elite,” said James Harden had this to say about his teammate postgame.
“It felt like he didn’t miss a shot. His shot-making ability is elite.”@JHarden13 was in awe of @kawhileonard‘s 39-PT performance on 15-19 FGM 🌟🌟 pic.twitter.com/5tW7EOW0E8
— NBA (@NBA) April 22, 2025
Tuesday marked Leonard’s second-career playoff game with 35-plus points on 75-plus field goal percentage, making him the fourth player in the league’s history to accomplish the feat multiple times in the postseason. Booker (3x), Nowitzki (2x) and Shaquille O’Neal (2x) are the other three. It was the 18th time in Leonard’s 13-year career that he scored 35-plus in the playoffs, and his 15th 30-point playoff game for the Clippers, the most in LA’s franchise history.
“This is what Kawhi lives for,” said coach Tyronn Lue after the masterful display from the superstar forward. “We know if we got a healthy Kawhi, we can win any series.”
But Leonard isn’t just healthy. He looks explosive. Dangerous. Lethal, even, and on both ends of the court. He was surgical in the fourth quarter, playing all 12 minutes on his way to 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting, along with three assists, a rebound, and perhaps the game-sealing steal on a pass from Nikola Jokić with less than 40 seconds remaining. After an uncharacteristic seven turnovers in Game 1, including two in the final frame, Kawhi only turned it over once in Game 2.
With the game on the line in crunch time and the Clippers holding a 103-102 edge, Kawhi went to work on Aaron Gordon before Russell Westbrook had the chance to double-team him beyond the three-point line. Leonard got to his spot in the mid-range before rising and draining the pull-up jumper with 54.5 seconds remaining, cementing LA’s series-tying win. It was that kind of night for him, as he was deadly from anywhere on the floor, no matter what the Nuggets threw his way.
If the first two contests were any indication, this ultra-competitive First Round series seems destined to go six or seven games. Basketball fans everywhere deserve a healthy Kawhi Leonard in the Playoffs, and he’ll aim to give the Clippers a 2-1 lead over Denver when Game 3 tips off on Thursday night in the first-ever postseason game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California.
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