One night after Kawhi Leonard crashed to the court in Dallas, his team’s nine-game winning streak came crashing to an end without him Thursday in Oklahoma City. With Leonard sidelined by a contusion of his left hip, which he’d suffered in the final minute of the Clippers’ win the previous night, the Clippers’ undefeated month finally saw its first blemish in a 134-115 loss to the Thunder. Paul George returned after his one-game absence due to illness and scored 22 points in 29 minutes. The Clippers’ 14-point deficit was gone barely two minutes into the second half after a crossover and step-back 3-pointer by Harden. It took only two and a half minutes for them to trail again by double digits, part of a 12-0 run by the Thunder (18-8) that included Holmgren’s alley-oop dunk that he’d thrown to himself, off of the backboard.

Source: Los Angeles Times December 22, 2023 10:21 UTC