The Kawhi and PG era has kicked off

With Kawhi Leonard and Paul George finally sharing the floor, the Los Angeles Clippers grinded out a 107-104 overtime win over the visiting Boston Celtics on Thursday. The Clippers improved to a 10-5 record and are now winners of three in a row.

George and Leonard didn’t have a good night handling or shooting the ball, as they each had five turnovers and combined to go 15-for-38 (39.5%) from the floor. Neither led the team in scoring as well, with Lou Williams coming off the bench to chip in 27 points. It wasn’t an ideal start, but as they say, “a win is a win.”

The Clippers’ two superstars should be able to bounce back this Saturday against the Rockets. Both will be eager to play better and have a ton tricks to throw at the defense. They got embarrassed in Houston during last week’s 102-93 loss, as the hyped team defense basically got ripped apart by James Harden.

As the likely aggressor for the game, look for George (28.3 PPG), Leonard (25.8 PPG), and Williams (22.3) to go off.

Streak snapped

The Houston Rockets got their eight-game winning streak snapped on Thursday by the Denver Nuggets, 105-95. It was their lowest scoring output and the first time they didn’t cross the century mark this season. With the loss, they dropped to an 11-3 record instead of tying the Los Angeles Lakers for first place in the Western Conference.

Still, confidence could be running high within the Rockets organization. The offense is still top three in points (117.9 PPG) and they looked in command in the aforementioned win over the Clippers this past week. Offensively, Harden smoked defenders for 47 points and seven assists, while on defense, the Rockets were able to hold Kawhi and company to an appalling 16-for-52 (30.7%) shooting in the first half.

The presence of an elite scorer like George, which was not there in the previous meeting, will provide a big challenge, but with Harden, Russell Westbrook, and a freakish offensive pace on deck, Houston is more than capable of going toe-to-toe with any team in the league.

Westbrook was quiet in last week’s clash, going 6-for-20 for 17 points, two rebounds, and two assists. It will be interesting to see if he puts on a show in front of his hometown

PREDICTION:

The Clippers win. They are now locked in and well-armed to climb up the standings.