The Clippers went into Phoenix and defeated the Suns 116-107 in the final game before the All-Star Break. Keep reading for a brief recap of the game.

RECAP

As Clippers-Suns games usually are in Phoenix, this one was extremely weird but also entertaining. Let’s begin with the weird: Josh Okogie and Terance Mann outperformed every other player that took the court.

Mann’s impact was immediate, as it’s often been since joining the starting lineup. Like a man with his head on fire, he began this game with a full-speed transition attack downhill, leading to a dump-off dunk to the trailing Ivica Zubac. A couple more stops at the rim and a 3-pointer later, the Clippers’ early lead stood at 18-9 lead behind eight quick points from Mann. They’d continue their solid play throughout the quarter and into the second before it was Okogie’s turn to get started. Okogie capitalized on some open looks from deep, turned atrocious Clippers miscues into buckets at the rim and reeled off 10 points in a three-minute span to cut Phoenix’s deficit from eight to one. And at the half, the Clippers lead the Suns 54-52.

Normalcy was restored in the second half, bringing more entertainment to the contest. Well, Mann and Okogie continued to play lights out, but they received help from the big guns. Devin Booker followed up a five-point first half with seven third-quarter points to keep the Suns in the game, but after putting up a donut in the first half (zero points on 0/8 shooting), Kawhi Leonard found his typical third-quarter rhythm to help put LA in control of the game with his 11 points in the frame.

Yet, a fourth and final quarter still needed to be played. One that began with Leonard on the bench while five others would have to deliver in spots they’d failed to on more than a few occasions throughout the season. But they didn’t fail this time. Thanks to a combination of Paul George’s shotmaking, Eric Gordon’s playmaking and LA’s overall strong defense, the Clippers were able to run through the tape and take a 116-107 win into the break.

NOTES

Slowing Phoenix’s stars:

Much Like Kawhi Leonard’s struggles on Thursday night, Devin Booker’s subpar stat line had much to do with him missing shots he’d usually make. There were surely more than a few strong defensive possessions scattered from guys like Eric Gordon and Terance Mann that forced Booker into an uncharacteristic five turnovers, but this felt like more of an outlier game than anything else for Book — an outlier performance the Clippers will gladly accept.

Chris Paul, on the other hand? Give the Clippers’ pick-and-roll defense all the credit in the world for his 5 points on 2/8 shooting. As always, Ivica Zubac defended Chris Paul well in the drop coverage (specifically noted by 213 Hoops’ own Lucas Hann on the postgame podcast). CP3 was hesitant with his decision-making, preventing Phoenix’s offense from kicking into gear. It’ll be worth monitoring how Paul and Booker benefit offensively from the attention Kevin Durant will draw.

Standings Watch:

Thursday’s Clippers win moved them ahead of Phoenix in the Western Conference standings and into the fourth seed. It also brought the season to 2-1 in Phoenix’s favor, which gives LA a chance to tie the season series on the last game of the regular season should it have implications on the final seedings. LA will come out of the All-Star Break just one game behind the third-seeded Sacramento and four behind second-seeded Memphis with 3 head-to-head matchups with the Grizzlies remaining. These final 21 games of the season should be interesting.

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