The Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics faced off for the second and final time this season in what was another thrilling matchup. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George's club visited Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's club in Boston, which was a 116-110 Celtics victory.
Brown and Tatum each finished with a game-high 29 points on a combined 43 percent shooting. It wasn't the most efficient night by the duo, but they were able to outplay Leonard and George in the victory.
Leonard finished with 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting, while George added 24 points on 10-of-22 shooting.
The game afforded everyone an opportunity to watch two of the best duos in the NBA go head-to-head once again. Each team is led by a pair of two-way forwards and each roster has a bevy of quality supporting players.
“I think you can draw some similarities,” Paul George said of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's Celtics last time the duo faced off on Dec. 12. “Just their roster and our roster as well. We've got a great supporting cast around myself and Kawhi as well as they do. Across the board, there's veteran leadership, they got veteran guys over there. You look at us from a paper standpoint, we do match up similarly. It's great to see. I love both of their games. I hope those two guys stick together for the rest of their career. They're special together. It's definitely a dynamic duo and I think they just complement each other so well.”
George was highly complimentary of the Jayson Tatum-Jaylen Brown duo, one that many over the years suggested breaking up despite them being just 24 and 26 years of age, respectively.
Tatum says he agrees and sees the similarities in the way the two teams are built and led.
“Yeah, two guys like the same height, play both sides of the ball, can score at all levels, playmake.” Tatum told ClutchPoints. “I think we're kind of like the only two teams like that. I hope I’m not missing anybody off the top of my head, but you know those are the two guys I think of that kind of remind me of the guys that have two 6-foot-6 or 6-foot-9 wings that can defend, rebound, score, shoot the ball, bring it up the court. Kind of just like we do.”
When the two teams last met, the Clippers embarrassed the Celtics in a 113-93 home victory. Kawhi Leonard had a then-season-high 25 points, nine rebounds, and six assists, while Paul George added 26 points and six boards. On Thursday, Boston was determined to get back to playing their style and avenging their prior loss.
“I don't think [outscoring Leonard and George] means anything without a win,” Jaylen Brown said postgame Thursday. “I think that's what both teams are playing for, to win. Obviously, a lot of our jobs is to score the ball and put the ball in the basket, but it's to help our team win. To outscore them means a lot less if we lost the game. I think just focusing on winning was the emphasis tonight. I didn't want to lose and we just had to make plays. We made plays when we needed to and it helped us win.”
If both teams are able to stay healthy, Thursday's game could certainly be a potential preview of the 2023 NBA Finals. The Clippers have looked great with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George together again, while the Celtics have found their place as the best team in the league again after a recent-but-brief stumble.
“With a team like them, they're obviously gifted offensively with Jayson, with Jaylen,” Paul George continued. “They got great pieces around them, so they're gifted offensively. And with the growth and maturation of both of those two guys, I think they're doing a great job of sharing that load, being playmakers and scorers and I think really just elevating each other. And so you see that with them. It's a continuity team. They've been together for a while now.”
Clippers’ Paul George on Celtics’ Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown:
"I love both of their games. I hope those two guys stick together for the rest of their career. They're special together. It's definitely a dynamic duo. They just compliment each other so well."
(via @TomerAzarly) pic.twitter.com/uNjY9nkEA4
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) December 30, 2022
The Boston Celtics will now take a few days off before traveling to Denver to take on Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets on New Year's Day. The Los Angeles Clippers will close out the 2022 calendar year with an afternoon game against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday afternoon.
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