Zion Williamson and Co Muffle Streaking Hot Clippers’ Dream Run

The Clippers lost tonight’s game, and the New Orleans Pelicans extended their winning streak to four. LA was 9-1 heading into tonight’s game, but they had to admit defeat to the dominant Zion Williamson and his Pelicans 106-117. Williamson finished with a double-double as he scored 21 points and 10 assists.

Unfortunately, none of the Clippers scored more than 20. The highest in the team tonight was James Harden with 19 points.

Williamson was on the injury report because of a bone bruise on his left foot, but come game time he suited up. Finishing just one point shy of his career-high assists, he scored 13 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. CJ McCollum led the scorers with 25 points while grabbing seven rebounds, and dishing four assists. McCollum also took off in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 of his total points in that stretch.

Right behind them was Brandon Ingram with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds while Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III scored 13 points each. Jones, though, faced a slight mishap in the middle of the first quarter as he went face-to-face with Kawhi Leonard‘s shoulder while chasing a pass. He was back in the second quarter.

But how did the LA Clippers do all the while?

The Clippers played as tired as they looked

Coming off one of their most successful Grammys trip (6-1), the brutal schedule could be blamed for tonight’s underwhelming performance. The Clippers finished the first quarter with a 17-point deficit and moved to the second half 55-47. Aside from Harden, Norman Powell contributed 18 points for the team.

Read More: Despite Insane Transformation, Zion Williamson Gets Mixed Reaction From Fans Ahead of Potential Career-best Season: “29 Game Season Loading”

But Paul George had only seven points on a 3-of-15 shooting. Kawhi, for his part, had 15 points, four assists, and six rebounds while Ivica Zubac almost came close to a double-double with 12 points and eight rebounds. Despite all of it, “The Beard” passed the Hall of Famer and Bulls’ assistant coach, Maurice Cheeks (7,392), for the 15th position in the All-Time Career Assists list.

The second quarter of the matchup saw Harden (7397) with three of his total five assists, putting him above Cheeks. The 10x All-Star admitted that there were plenty of opportunities to close the game. But he spoke for the whole team when he said, “Now we get some rest and can finish the next few games strong.” (credit: ESPN)

There is no doubt that the Clippers fans believe his words. After all, LA did the impossible on Tuesday when they rose to the top as the No.1 seed after starting 3-7 this season. The first team in NBA history to do so, tonight’s loss pulled them down to No. 3. Yet, all hope’s not lost.

It’s the NBA. Anything can happen in the gap of a few hours.

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