On December 28th, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued with the Clippers hosting the Warriors. With Curry absent, the Warriors struggled offensively, scoring only 62 points in three quarters and narrowing the gap in the final quarter but ultimately failing to hold on. In the end, the Warriors lost 92-102 to the Clippers, suffering their third consecutive defeat.
In the first quarter, Zubac started with a two-handed dunk, Davis also scored under the basket, and then both teams were locked in a tug-of-war, with neither team's offensive state being particularly good. Wiggins hit a three-pointer, Dunn responded in kind. The two teams traded blows on the offensive end, with Zubac scoring inside, and the Clippers once led 17-12. However, Schroder hit a jumper, Moody countered with a dunk, and the Clippers' offense faltered, with Kuminga making two free throws to take the lead. Harden made his first basket with a put-back, and Pozhemska hit a three-pointer, giving the Warriors a 21-19 lead at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Dunn broke through for a score, Kuminga dunked with both hands, Powell broke through repeatedly for points, and the Clippers regained the initiative by scoring continuously. Li Kai hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding, Hield also made a three-pointer, Kofi responded, and the two teams were again locked in a tug-of-war. Just as the Clippers were about to pull away, Kuminga dunked to keep up, Pozhemska hit a three-pointer, and the Warriors took the lead again at 41-40. Harden hit a three-pointer in response, Kofi also made a three-pointer, and finally Harden hit another from outside, ending the half with the Clippers leading the Warriors 49-43.
In the third quarter, Schroder broke through for a score, Xiaoqiongs and Zubac dunked in succession, Powell broke through for a score, and the Warriors' offense faltered, with Xiaoqiongs getting a put-back dunk. Harden hit a jumper, bringing the score to 65-50. Wiggins broke through to stop the bleeding, Kuminga broke through repeatedly for points, successfully narrowing the gap. However, the Clippers' Batum and Dunn hit three-pointers to stabilize the situation. Kuminga cut through for a dunk, Kofi and Powell hit three-pointers again, and Kofi made two free throws, extending the lead to 21 points. Moody made two free throws to stop the bleeding, and the Warriors trailed 62-81 at the end of the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, both teams' offenses stalled at the start, with Kuminga breaking the deadlock with two free throws, Powell broke through for a score, and the Warriors relied on Kuminga for points, stealing and performing a windmill dunk, bringing the score to 69-85. The Clippers made consecutive turnovers, and the Warriors scored repeatedly, with an 18-4 run reducing the gap to 5 points. Zubac broke the deadlock with a hook shot, Powell missed an open basket but redeemed himself with a three-pointer, Moody hit a three-pointer, Harden broke through for a score, and Xiaoqiongs sealed the victory with an alley-oop dunk. In the end, the Clippers narrowly defeated the Warriors.
In this game, the Clippers also had a scare in the fourth quarter, with six players scoring in double figures. Harden had 18 points and 7 assists, Zubac had 17 points and 10 rebounds, Powell had 26 points, and Xiaoqiongs had 14 points. On the Warriors' side, Kuminga played the best game of his career, scoring 34 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists, including 15 points in the fourth quarter alone.