Kawhi Leonard Looks Vintage in Clipper Triumph, Cade Cunningham Introduces Himself to the Playoffs in Piston Win

A pair of Game 2’s were decided on Monday night as the Detroit Pistons defeated the New York Knicks 100-94 at Madison Square Garden and the Los Angeles Clippers evened up their series with the Denver Nuggets with a 105-102 victory in yet another thriller in that series. 

The nightcap was the headliner, as Kawhi Leonard starred with 39 points to lead the Clippers as they knotted their first-round series with the Nuggets at 1-1. 

Leonard, who missed just four shot attempts (15-for-19) and was 4-for-7 from 3-point range, delivered a throwback performance where if you squinted you could see a Raptor or Spur instead of a Clipper. 

Money all game, Leonard delivered late. 

With just over a minute remaining, Leonard worked on Aaron Gordon on the right wing before rising for a cool jumper from 16 feet to give the Clippers their three-point cushion with 54.5 seconds remaining. 

Seconds later, Nikola Jokic drove into the paint and was met with resistance by James Harden and Ivica Zubac. Jokic threw a pass to the right wing and a leaping Leonard grabbed the ball, stepping back to impede the path of Jokic’s pass that was intended for Christian Braun, with Russell Westbrook also in the vicinity. 

Leonard backed the ball out and handed off to Harden, who drove left on Jamal Murray but missed high off the glass. The Nuggets rebounded, but Braun missed badly from the left wing. Jokic rebounded the miss and retreated to the 3-point line on the left side, turning and shooting over a contesting Leonard. The shot barely grazed the backboard. Game over. 

The Clipper win delivered another thriller, just as Saturday’s overtime Game 1 was. 

The story of the game was Leonard, who on Monday night resurrected his 2017 Spur, 2019 Raptor phase. 

Having played 33 games this season, scoring 24 total points last playoffs and playing in just two playoff games in 2022-23, Monday was the best that we have seen of Leonard in the playoffs in a while. In those 2023 playoffs, he scored 38 and 31 points in Games 1 and 2 before missing the remainder of the postseason. In 2021, he played 11 postseason games (30.4 points per game)  before tearing his knee, forcing him to miss all of the 2021-22 season. 

But on Monday, Leonard looked like his old vintage self. Akin to the two greatest shooting guards ever in the way that he utilizes the mid-range game, Leonard was on from everywhere. Pull-ups, pull-backs, fadeaways. 

The special thing about Leonard is though he has the supreme skills to get to his spots and maneuver, he has a demeanor, not unlike his former Spur teammate Tim Duncan, where you would not know how good he is playing by looking at him on the floor. He rarely releases emotion, stoic in his expression. Like Duncan, he lets his game talk. 

Leonard was schooled that way, a teammate of Duncan and a student of Gregg Popovich. 

Monday night, he was in his zone. By looking at him though, you wouldn’t know. 

Harden was 7-for-17 from the floor (4-for-11 from downtown) for 18 points and 7 assists, while Zubac (6-for-10) put forth his 17th consecutive double-double, registering 16 points and 12 rebounds. Norman Powell was 5-for-14 but did score 13 points including a clutch triple late in the fourth. 

The Clippers shot 48.2% from the field, 13-for-34 from deep, and 10-for-12 from the free-throw line. 

Denver, meanwhile, shot 46.8% from the field, made 14 out of 32 triples, and 14 of 22 free-throw attempts. 

The Nuggets had a whopping 50-32 rebounding advantage - 15 from Michael Porter Jr. (15 points, 6-for-11) and 12 from Nikola Jokic (26 points, 10 assists, 8-for-16). Russell Westbrook off the bench was 5-for-11 (3-for-6 from downtown) for 14 points, while Jamal Murray, apparently under the weather as TNT’s play-by-play man Brian Anderson said in the first half, scored 23 points with 6 assists (9-for-17, 4-for-8). Jokic, like Leonard in Game 1, turned the ball over seven times. 

Powell and Kris Dunn accounted for three thefts apiece, while Leonard and Nic Batum managed two each. The Clippers have relentless defenders on the wings, and it translates into tough possessions for the opposition. 

Both teams could not be more even through two games. 

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As the old saying goes “If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.” 

On Monday night, Cade Cunningham made himself known to a national and international basketball audience with the first of what will be many big time playoff performances in his career. 

In the Pistons’ 100-94 victory, Cunningham scored 33 points with 12 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals (11-for-21, 10-for-12 from the free-throw line) as the Pistons held on late, the opposite of what occurred in Game 1 where they gave up 21 consecutive points in the fourth quarter. 

Dennis Schroder, one of the steady veterans on the otherwise young Pistons, put up 20 points off the bench in 29 minutes, shooting 6-for-10 from the field, 5-for-6 from the line and 3-for-5 from downtown. Tobias Harris went 6-for-11 for 15 points and 13 rebounds, with Jalen Duren redeeming his six rebound Game 1 performance with 12 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Duren is a strong kid with a bright future. 

Despite making six of their 27 attempts from downtown, the Pistons shot 44.6% from the field and outrebounded the Knicks 48-34. 

Jalen Brunson’s 37 was tops for the Knicks (7 assists, 2 steals, 12-for-27, 4-for-12, 9-for-11), with Mikal Bridges putting up 19 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals on 8-for-18 shooting. OG Anunoby hit on just four out of 10 shots for 10 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns offered only 11 shots, making five, for 10 points accompanied by 6 rebounds. New York shot an even 42.0% and made 10 of their 35 downtown heaves. 

The Piston bench outscored the Knick bench 35-8, and the Pistons got to the line 15 more times (34-19) making 28 of their 34. Turnovers were near even, the Pistons turning the ball over 14 times and the Knicks 15 times. 

The victory for the Pistons was their first playoff win since 2008, and Thursday’s Game 3 will be their first home playoff game since 2019.