On January 16th, Beijing time, the Clippers played against the Nets at home. The game ended with the Clippers defeating the Nets 126-67. Although there is indeed a gap between the Nets and the Clippers, many people did not expect the Nets to collapse so badly in the second half of the game, especially after the third quarter when the Nets really couldn't play anymore. On the other hand, the Clippers had multiple players contributing to the score and continuously widened the gap. The Clippers even led by as much as 64 points in this game, and the Nets suffered a crushing defeat.
In this game, the Clippers defeated the Nets by 59 points, which set a new record for the largest point difference in the NBA this season (previously the Celtics defeated the Raptors 125-71 with a 54-point lead). This was also the largest winning point difference in the history of the Clippers (the previous record was 50 points). According to statistics, the last time an NBA game had a score lower than 67 was in 2016, when the Mavericks lost to the Grizzlies 64-80. From these data, we can see how poorly the Nets performed in this game. As for the Clippers, they played very efficiently in this game, not only their starting players but also the bench players like Coffey performed well. In this game, except for the first quarter when the Nets tied with the Clippers, the Nets' score trailed behind the Clippers in the remaining three quarters.
In this game, Jones also took the starting position, and Tyronn Lue's decision was recognized by many people. After all, Dunn's offensive state in the game was too poor, and he could not hit even when he had wide-open opportunities. Therefore, even though Dunn's defense was good, he should still be benched. Moreover, Jones' defensive ability is not weaker than Dunn's, let alone his counterattack ability being stronger than Dunn's. As for Dunn, after being benched, he still couldn't find any outside shooting feel, and ultimately scored no points with 0 out of 3 three-point attempts in this game. On the other hand, although Jones also missed his three-point shots, he could score by rushing into the paint, finishing the game with 11 points and 3 rebounds on 4 out of 7 shooting.
However, for the Clippers, what's important is not a big win, but Harden's post-game statement about Leonard. After the game, Harden talked about his teammate Leonard's performance during the interview, saying: "He needs to keep performing like this. I know it's hard because he just recovered, so he wants to build confidence and make sure his body is healthy. But the only way to build confidence is to play in games and perform at a high level. Tonight is a good omen for him and our team, and I hope it continues." Leonard played very efficiently in this game, finishing with 23 points and 2 rebounds on 8 out of 11 shooting. Such a Leonard is what the Clippers have been expecting. After playing multiple games, Leonard finally delivered an excellent performance.
Although Leonard has already played in the game, his offensive state was not good, which caused some concern. After all, if the Clippers want to achieve something this season, Leonard must return to his peak form, especially finding his rhythm on the offensive end. Now that Leonard shows signs of recovery, this is the most important thing for the Clippers. After all, the gap between the Nets and the Clippers is clear, and the Nets will not become a stumbling block for the Clippers on their road to the championship. Therefore, even though the Clippers achieved a big win, the most important thing for the Clippers is to see Leonard recover. Only when Leonard maintains his health and delivers efficient performances this season can the Clippers win more games.
