Spurs at Clippers
Kawhi Leonard returned from a one-game absence and picked up right where he left off with 31 points in the Los Angeles Clippers' 118-106 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Leonard will try to push his streak of 30 or more points to 10 straight games when the Clippers host one of his former teams, the San Antonio Spurs, on Monday.
Leonard, who took several of his teammates plus owner Steve Ballmer and coach Doc Rivers down the road to San Diego State for his college jersey retirement ceremony on Saturday night, recorded his first career triple-double last week and is averaging 34.6 points over his last nine contests. "He's playing as well as anyone in the league right now and he's doing it all around," Rivers told reporters of Leonard. "It's not just scoring, he's doing it with his defense, with his passing. The best part of it, it's coming in the flow. It's not a forced 30. It's just ball movement. He's going downhill, he's getting his shots and it doesn't stand out some nights." Leonard won an NBA Finals MVP award as a member of the Spurs, but the franchise is not quite at that level this season and owns an 8-14 record on the road as it embarks on its annual rodeo road trip. San Antonio takes some momentum into the eight-game trip after earning wins over the Utah Jazz and Charlotte Hornets at home.
TIME: 10:30 p.m. ET. TV: NBA TV, FS Southwest, FS Prime Ticket, TSN5
ABOUT THE SPURS (22-26): San Antonio will be without a representative at the All-Star Game for the first time since 1997 but shooting guard DeMar DeRozan is performing at an All-Star level of late. DeRozan averaged 25.9 points on 56.1 percent shooting in January and kicked off February by scoring a team-high 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting and adding six assists in Saturday's 114-90 triumph over the Hornets. LaMarcus Aldridge (thumb) returned from a two-game absence on Saturday and managed eight points on 4-of-10 shooting in 28 minutes.
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (34-15): Leonard and Paul George took the court together on Saturday for the first time in over three weeks after George sat out nine games with a hamstring injury and Leonard missed Thursday's contest. George, who struggled to eight points on 2-of-10 shooting in his return on Thursday, scored 21 points while going 9-of-18 in 25 minutes against Minnesota. "It felt great to get back out there with the guys, be full strength," George told reporters. "It's always good whenever we can do that and build toward something great. I feel good. I feel good. It's all about building up towards that marathon at the end of the year."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Spurs C Jakob Poeltl scored a season-high 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting in Saturday's win.
2. Clippers SG Lou Williams is shooting 32 percent from the floor over the last six games, including 8-of-39 from beyond the arc.
3. Los Angeles crushed the Spurs 134-109 in San Antonio on Dec. 21 as Leonard collected 26 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.