Harden Reaches 25k Points as Clippers Overcome Warriors

James Harden was the story of the night, both with milestones and impact.

(Photo by Justin Russo, Russo Writes)

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — James Harden, the crafty left-hander who made a career out of punishing the smallest advantage that defenses gifted him, came speeding down off of an Ivica Zubac ball screen with only Golden State center Dario Saric sitting between himself and the rim.

By the time Saric was able to react, the ball was already leaving Harden’s famed left hand and heading toward the bottom of the net. The basket resulted in the 24,999th and 25,000th points of Harden’s illustrious career on a night that showcased Harden’s ability to be fully actualized with the LA Clippers.

Harden finished with season highs in both points (28) and assists (15) en route to leading the Clippers to a 121-113 win over the Warriors. Harden also had seven rebounds and four blocks.

The lefty made five of his six 3-point attempts and 11 of his 12 tries from charity stripe. The layup that put Harden into an exclusive club that made him one of just 24 players in NBA history to ever accrue 25,000 points was the only 2-point basket of the night for the 10-time All-Star.

Harden’s 15 assists contributed to 36 points, meaning the guard scored or assisted on 64 of the team’s 121 points — or roughly 53 percent.

“(Paul George) unfortunately was out tonight, and so he (Harden) raises his level of play in these situations — having the ball more, be able to create more, make more plays for himself and for teammates, and that's what we brought him here for,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said following the team’s sixth straight victory. “It was just a huge game for him.”

Paul George had to miss Thursday’s game due to what was originally deemed as a sore left groin but was later labeled a sore left hip. It was an ailment that caused him to miss the second half of Tuesday’s win over Sacramento.

As Lue alluded to, being down a man allowed Harden to achieve greater freedom offensively.

Harden was able to carve Golden State up to the point where the Warriors were furiously blitzing the maestro whenever the ball was in his hands in the fourth quarter. It felt like the first time since Harden’s arrival that the Clippers and their fans got to see what his true dominance could look like when allowed to have carte blanche over the whole show.

“It doesn’t matter if I get 10 points or [have the scoring output] tonight. Winning is the key,” Harden said after the game.

“The stats and everything, I’ve done a lot of different things. Accomplished a lot of different individual stats. To me, it’s about winning, about building chemistry throughout the team, to get better as a unit. I think tonight was another step forward for us as a unit.”

It was also a step forward for a player like Amir Coffey who got the start in place of George. The five-year veteran hasn’t had too much of a role with the Clippers this present season but, regardless, was Lue’s choice to replace one of the team’s most valuable players.

The move paid dividends in a major way.

Coffey had a season-high 18 points as well as four rebounds and one assist while attempting 15 shots in nearly 30 minutes. Coffey made six of his field goal attempts including four 3s. The 11 long-range attempts from Coffey on Thursday equaled a career-high.

“We have a lot of confidence in Amir,” Lue remarked postgame. “To come out and do what he did tonight was huge for us.”

Thursday night was the most minutes Coffey had seen in a game since Feb. 10, 2023, when he logged 30 in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

“It’s just staying professional, being ready when your number’s called,” voiced Coffey in the locker room to reporters following the game. “It’s a long season. You never know what can happen, so I just continue working out, being ready, knowing the plays, knowing what the coaches want from me.”

A source close to the situation tells Russo Writes that Coffey was rewarded with a starting spot for Thursday’s game due to his constant effort and attitude in practice sessions, as well as his defensive ability to match up with Golden State sharpshooters Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

“Obviously, we hope (George) gets back as fast as he can, but guys like (Coffey) was [sic] ready for his name to be called,” echoed Harden.

Harden continued: “He’s been prepared, he’s a true professional and he played well tonight. So, injuries and things like that are part of the game of basketball. You gotta find ways to continue to grow, and tonight we took a step forward because we know we got guys who, if somebody was to be out, we got guys that can step up and contribute to the game, which is a very, very exciting part to our team.”

Kawhi Leonard scored 17 of his 27 points in the first half and also added eight rebounds and two assists in 39 minutes while going 9-for-16 from the field.

Leonard is averaging 25.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists over these last 14 games as the Clippers have gone 11-3 over that span to move to 14-10 overall on the season. The forward has made 53.7 percent of his shots in that time.

As he’s been wont to do this season, Norman Powell contributed in a major way off the bench as he finished with 21 points in a season-high-tying 36 minutes. Powell sank nine of his 13 field goal attempts while also supplying five rebounds and two assists.

Ivica Zubac logged 30 minutes, scoring 10 points, nabbing eight rebounds, and blocking two shots in the process. Terance Mann had two points in 20 minutes as a starter.

Russell Westbrook contributed nine points, four rebounds, and two assists in 19 minutes while backup center Daniel Theis, who was on the receiving end of a Chris Paul Flagrant 1 foul in the second quarter, had four points in nearly 16 minutes. Rookie Kobe Brown only scored two points in seven minutes but was a plus-14.

Golden State guard Klay Thompson led all scorers with 30 points. Thompson made eight of his 12 3-point attempts. Stephen Curry finished with 17 points on 5-for-17 shooting. The Warriors shot 43.5 percent overall while the Clippers connected on 50.6 percent of their attempts.

As a result of the win, the Clippers moved to 2-1 against the Warriors this season and guaranteed themselves at least a split of the season series. The two teams will not meet again until Valentine’s Day. The Warriors dropped to 10-14 due to the loss.

The Clippers will look to push their winning streak to seven games on Saturday evening as they welcome the New York Knicks (13-10) into town.