On January 2, 2024, Beijing time, Leonard returned after a 4-game break, Leonard's 4 games of suspension, the Clippers are 2-2, still ranked 4th in the West, today the Heat Butler is suspended, the result is no suspense, the Clippers have been firmly in control of the situation since the second half, and finally beat the Heat 121-104, although Leonard scored a team-high 24 points, but the MVP of this game is none other than Harden!
First of all, Harden played very efficiently, only 8 shots in the whole game, Powell and Wei Shaoduo, who had not been substituted, but scored 15 points, Leonard scored 24 points on 19 shots, George scored 23 points on 14 shots, and it depends on Harden in terms of efficiency.
Secondly, Harden focused on his own work, using 10 assists to sort out the team's offense, averaging 7.9 assists per game and being the team's assist leader.
Finally, Harden played a great role on the defensive end, contributing 1 steal, 2 blocks and only 1 foul in the whole game, which shows that Harden is both smart and decisive, and works hard, averaging 0.92 blocks per game this season second only to Zubac, who is 2.13 meters.
The Clippers can trade Harden, it is really a blessing for Leonard and George, but a team can win by the efforts of the whole team, Leonard 24 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 1 block, 4 steals and "death entanglement", George 23 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal, Powell 22 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, 4 of 5 three-pointers, Mann 12 points, Wei Shao 8 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.
Heat: Herro 12 points, Bam Adebayo 21 points and 15 rebounds, Harkes 15 points, Dunroe 15 points, veteran Love 17 points.
After this game, the Clippers won three in a row, 20-12 and ranked fourth in the West, while the Heat lost two in a row, 19-14 and fifth from the bottom.