Kawhi’s return tips the balance in a frantic LA derby

The Lakers did not have far to travel to reach the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, where they faced the Clippers in the Los Angeles derby. The venue – set to host the 2026 All-Star Game – is also the new home of the franchise owned by Steve Ballmer, and the place where California’s estranged basketball “brothers” finally went their separate ways: same city, different surnames, and radically different histories in substance and style.

Between one thing and another, the so-called “bad brother” has been writing his own story ever since leaving behind Donald Sterling, his penny-pinching ownership and racist remarks. Since then, the Clippers have reached the playoffs 12 times in the past 14 seasons, a sharp contrast with a franchise long defined by failure.

One scandal, however, has replaced another. This is the same period in which the Clippers reached the first conference finals in their history in 2021, lifting a curse and leaving only the Pelicans and Hornets as franchises never to have made it that far. Earlier this season it emerged that Kawhi Leonard had allegedly received under-the-table payments tied to a contract signed outside league rules, supposedly arranged by Ballmer – the Microsoft cofounder – along with the player’s family, that now-famous “inner circle” whose influence has become a tiresome cliché. Leonard did play against the Lakers, allowing his team to rediscover a level not seen since his Toronto days, before – unsurprisingly – getting injured again, returning sooner than expected to face the team he once hoped to join when he left San Antonio, and later Canada, but never did.

On the other side, the Lakers had other concerns. They had lost five of six games before stringing together two important wins that showed a different face: first against the Raptors at Crypto Arena, then against the Nuggets – without Nikola Jokic – at Denver’s Mile High. With Luka Doncic in sublime form and LeBron James seemingly immune to time, the Lakers have tightened up defensively, turning what had been a mess into something approaching a strength. Whether that holds or proves fleeting was to be tested again, away from home but against familiar neighbors.

It was another exam night – and in the West, every night is an exam. Winning often feels routine; losing is punished brutally, with less than three months to go before the playoffs.

That was the backdrop as the Lakers fell 112–104, a game decided by frantic final minutes and a Leonard return timed perfectly for the home celebration. The Clippers had trailed by as many as 26 points, forcing the visitors to chase after a dreadful first half, and even closing to within three at 105–102 with just over a minute left. It was an illusion. Leonard finished with 26 points, Ivica Zubac had 18 and 19 rebounds – 10 offensive – and James Harden added 18 points and 10 assists, part of seven Clippers players in double figures.

For the Lakers, Doncic tried everything with 32 points – on 11 of 27 shooting and 3 of 13 from deep – plus 11 rebounds and eight assists. James had 23 points, five boards, six assists and two steals. It was not enough. The Clippers return to winning ways. The Lakers return to losing ones. And the Western Conference tightens again. Even more.

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Los Angeles Lakers

Stats

5 Deandre Ayton
6 Kobe Bufkin
77 Luka Dončić
28 Rui Hachimura
11 Jaxson Hayes
9 Bronny James Jr.
23 LeBron James
14 Maxi Kleber
4 Dalton Knecht
12 Jake LaRavia
36 Marcus Smart
17 Drew Timme
2 Jarred Vanderbilt
7 Gabe Vincent

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
5 Deandre Ayton	20	4	5	2	3	0	1	0	1	0/0	2/5	0/0	0	1	0
6 Kobe Bufkin	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
77 Luka Dončić	39	32	11	1	10	8	1	3	0	7/10	8/14	3/13	0	2	0
28 Rui Hachimura	28	12	3	0	3	2	1	0	1	0/0	3/4	2/7	0	1	0
11 Jaxson Hayes	16	6	2	1	1	0	1	0	1	0/0	3/4	0/0	0	2	0
9 Bronny James Jr.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
23 LeBron James	35	23	5	0	5	6	4	2	0	4/5	8/15	1/4	0	1	0
14 Maxi Kleber	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
4 Dalton Knecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
12 Jake LaRavia	22	7	5	2	3	1	1	3	4	1/2	0/3	2/2	0	1	0
36 Marcus Smart	29	10	0	0	0	4	1	2	0	1/1	3/5	1/5	0	3	0
17 Drew Timme	9	0	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	3	0
2 Jarred Vanderbilt	21	7	1	0	1	2	0	4	1	0/0	2/4	1/1	0	3	0
7 Gabe Vincent	15	3	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	1/1	0	0	0