DENVER — The Denver Nuggets are on notice.
Vintage Kawhi Leonard is back. And he led the Los Angeles Clippers to a 105-102 Game 2 victory over the Nuggets on Monday to tie the first-round playoff series at 1-1.
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The Clippers surged into the No. 5 seed, thanks to an 18-3 finish in the regular season sparked by a resurgent Leonard, whose Clippers tenure is so far known more for his injuries than any winning of significance.
Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, right, drives past Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., left, in the first half of Game 2 Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Leonard turned it up another notch Monday night in a performance reminiscent of his 2019 playoff run with the Toronto Raptors that ended with an NBA championship and his second Finals MVP trophy.
In a game featuring three-time MVP Nikola Jokić, Leonard was the best player on the floor. Leonard shot 9-of-10 from the field in a scorching first half that netted 21 points, including a 3-pointer to beat the second-quarter buzzer.
He continued to give the Nuggets fits and finished the game with 39 points three rebounds, five assists and two steals. He shot 15-of-19 from the field and 4-of-7 from 3. He hit a late jumper that extended the Clippers’ lead to the final margin in the final minute, then came up with a steal on Denver’s next possession.
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The Nuggets threw multiple defenders at Leonard, including Jamal Murray, Christian Braun and Michael Porter Jr. None was able slow the six-time All-Star who repeatedly scored at will from 3 and from midrange over helpless defenders.
While Leonard shined, Jokić struggled to produce early in a matchup that’s given him fits all season.
Clippers center Ivica Zubac, who stands at 7-feet tall and 240 pounds, defended Jokić as well as anybody during the regular season. He continued to limit Jokić on Monday while holding the MVP finalist to eight first-half points. Jokić attempted just six field goals before halftime — five of them from 3 and the other a dunk. He didn’t shoot his first free throw until the third quarter.
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Jokić rallied to finish with a team-high 27 points.
While Jokić was limited, the Nuggets leaned on his supporting cast, including Porter, who bounced back from a 3-point performance in just 26 minutes in Denver’s Game 1 overtime win. Porter started hot and had six points on four field-goal attempts before taking his first break on the bench.
He came up with multiple big buckets in the fourth quarter, including a put-back layup and a pull-up 3 that tied the game a 96-96. Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon, meanwhile, took on larger roles throughout the game as the Clippers made Jokić the center of their defensive attention.
But in the end, Leonard’s big night proved too much for the Nuggets to overcome. The Clippers, once an afterthought in the West, now have home-court advantage as the series shifts to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Thursday.
