Despite a slow start, the LA Clippers fought their way to a gutsy win over Pascal Siakam and the defending champion Toronto Raptors.
The LA Clippers were one of the grittiest teams in the NBA last season, and while that persona has certainly followed them into the early goings of the 2019-2020 campaign, no win has been as gritty as the one the Clippers managed Monday night.
Going into the second quarter trailing 23-15, the Clippers shifted into another gear for the rest of the game and wound up coming away with a 98-88 win over the defending champion Toronto Raptors.
That doesn’t mean they played a perfect game, though. Not by any means.
LA committed 19 turnovers in the win and had an incredibly poor shooting night, connecting on just 22.2 percent of their attempts from three-point range and 37.0 percent overall.
For the first time, Kawhi Leonard didn’t look like a dominant scorer, either. Despite playing a season-high 35 minutes, Leonard scored just 12 points on 2-of-11 shooting — a majority of his points coming from the free-throw line.
Leonard also committed a season-high nine turnovers against his former team, bringing his total up to 15 in the last two games. It’s something to keep an eye on, but also the kind of thing that should work itself out over time as he becomes more comfortable with his new team.
But even with his poor shooting performance and the high number of turnovers, Leonard was still one of the best players on the floor all night. He finished the game with 12 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, coming closer to a triple-double than he ever has in his career. Leonard also posted a plus/minus rating of +12, the second-highest in the game after Maurice Harkless‘ +14.
Other Clippers who had big nights include Patrick Beverley, who grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds; Lou Williams, who scored a game-high 21 points; and Patrick Patterson, who made half of the eight three-pointers he attempted on the night.
For more in-depth takeaways, continue to the next slide.