Kawhi Leonard and the LA Clippers earned a big-time win against one of the best teams in the NBA on Thursday night, thanks in large part to the contributions of new shooting guard Bennedict Mathurin.
The fourth year guard was traded to the Clippers on NBA trade deadline day in a package that also brought Isaiah Jackson and a couple of draft picks to Los Angeles in exchange for All-Defensive center Ivica Zubac.
In just his third game with the team since being acquired — and his first game inside Intuit Dome as a Clipper — Mathurin came up huge in the Clippers' comeback victory.
Bennedict Mathurin scored 38 points in his first game at home, leading the Clippers to a 115-114 win over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. The guard shot 12-of-22 from the field and 12-of-13 from the free throw line in the victory, scoring 11 points off the bench in the first quarter and pouring in 16 fourth quarter points to close out the win.
“He's been doing it,” Kawhi Leonard said of his new teammate. “It's great to have another scorer that can get 30 points, watched him in the NBA Finals [against the Oklahoma City Thunder]. He was doing it in the Finals last year, all year last year with the Pacers, so it's great to have him.”
Kawhi Leonard on Bennedict Mathurin's 38-point night vs. Nuggets:
“He's been doing it. It's great to have another scorer that can get 30 points, watched him in the Finals. He was doing it in the Finals last year, all year last year with the Pacers, so it's great to have him.” pic.twitter.com/rDreMcknPn
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) February 20, 2026
Mathurin had a couple of big performances for the Indiana Pacers last postseason, including a 27-point performance in Game 3 to help his team take a 2-1 series lead and a 24-point, 13-rebound performance in Game 7 after Tyrese Haliburton suffered the torn Achilles tendon.
“He's been aggressive since he's been playing with us, but it was great,” Leonard added. “Like you said, he scored 11 in the first, and he kept it going from there. He got out in transition, made some layups, hit some big three-point shots. Guarded pretty well as well, so it's been a great pickup.”
Bennedict Mathurin has increased his scoring, rebounding, and assisting in three consecutive seasons, but now has a chance to develop a consistency that was not as available to him in Indiana under head coach Rick Carlisle.
“It's going to be awesome [playing under head coach Tyronn Lue],” Mathurin said after last night's victory. “He might end up being my best friend. He told me to be aggressive, man. He told me to be myself, and I feel like he really knows my game. He really knows what I can do. So, I'm glad to have him as a coach and I think that bringing everybody along, we can do a lot of great things.”
Thursday night was also the second consecutive game that Mathurin has reached double-digit free throw attempts, displaying an ability to not only score at a high level, but put pressure on the defense and get to the free throw line, where he's shot 83.6 percent in his career.
