The NBA is back after an eventful All-Star break in Southern California.
The Nuggets head to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers to kick off the second-half of the season in a rematch of last spring’s first round battle.
The Clippers are a very different team than the last time these two teams faced off, but Kawhi Leonard is playing some of the best basketball of his career.
Leonard is averaging a career-high 27.9 points per game on 49.1 percent shooting overall and 38.3 percent from deep in just 32.8 minutes per game.
Since the trade deadline, when the Clippers shipped James Harden to Cleveland and Ivica Zubac to Indiana, the ball has been in Leonard’s hands a ton.
In four games since then, Leonard is averaging 22 shots per game, which is tied for the third-most in the league over that stretch.
His scoring has followed, averaging 30.8 per game, which is also the third-most among all players over that small sample size.
Denver will be without two of their top wing defenders, Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson, who are among the few players on their roster who can deal with a player of Leonard’s size and athleticism.
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The Clippers’ return for Harden, young point guard Darius Garland, still isn’t ready to return to the court with a toe injury, leaving a massive void behind Leonard.
With little scoring competition beside him, look for Leonard to have another big night on Thursday as the 2025-26 stretch run gets going.
The play: Kawhi Leonard to score more than 27.5 points (-110, FanDuel Sportsbook)
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Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He’s particularly knowledgeable about the big three — MLB, the NFL and the NBA.