It was just last week that the Clippers hosted the Phoenix Suns and only nine days later they were playing them again at the Intuit Dome.
Before the game, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said there weren’t a lot of advantages to playing a team like the Suns so soon again, especially a team with lethal weapons Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. At least they didn’t have to face Bradley Beal, who didn’t play Thursday because of an injured elbow.
It looked as if the Clippers had found an advantage when they jumped on the Suns early, building a 19-point lead in the first quarter that grew to 21 in the third.
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The Clippers, however, were unable to hold the lead and lost 125-119 to the Suns despite having five players score in double figures.
That’s because Booker torched the Clippers for 40 points to go along with eight assists and five rebounds.
That’s because the Suns dominated the Clippers in the third quarter, shooting 80% (16 for 20) from the field on the way to scoring 39 points.
That’s because the Clippers turned the ball over six times in the fourth quarter.
All five of the Clippers’ games have been close, but they are winless in three games at their new home in Inglewood.
“We got to continue to keep getting better. We got to close games better and [it’s] just something to keep learning from,” Lue said. “All five of our games have been close, come down to the wire. We’ve been fortunate to win two of them. … So, just staying the course, understanding that our margin for error is very slim.
“Each possession matters. … We are playing hard, we are competing, but we got to play smarter and we got to be better.”
James Harden led the Clippers with a triple-double of 25 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds. It was his 78th career triple-double, moving him into a tie with Hall of Fame legend and one-time Laker Wilt Chamberlain for seventh-most in NBA history.
Harden surpassed 26,000 career points, becoming one of 20 players in league history to reach the milestone.
But Harden still is trying to be efficient with his game. He was eight for 19 from the field and three for 10 from three-point range. He had six turnovers.
“Like, turnovers are going to happen,” Harden said. “I try to, but some of the passes that I thread, a lot of them are successful and some of them aren’t. So, just trying to find a balance of when to throw and when not to. But the ones that’s unforced, I got to control those a lot better.
“But I don’t think it’s necessarily the turnovers that lost the game. We came off that third quarter defensively, they didn’t feel us defensively, our presence, and they were just comfortable. They made shots and that got them back into the game.”
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The Suns took over the game in the second half and the Clippers’ defense couldn’t contain them.
The Clippers saw their 70-52 halftime lead dwindle to just two points entering the fourth quarter. It didn’t help the Clippers that Norman Powell (23 points) left for the locker room after he was hit in the face. He returned to the game in the fourth quarter.
Phoenix shot 60.5% from the field in the final 24 minutes, 52.5% from three-point range and scored 73 points.
“Definitely frustrating, but nothing we can do about it,” Harden said about the Clippers blowing a 21-point lead. “We got to just find ways to get better, which I think from last night we had that conversation and then tonight I think we came out with a really good energy, positive start and we got enough talent.
“We just got to, when we do get leads, we got to know how to get a really good shot and sustain those leads…. but that all comes with us, the growing pains.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.