Kawhi Leonard scored a season-high 23 points and the Los Angeles Clippers posted the largest margin of victory in franchise history by obliterating the visiting Brooklyn Nets 126-67 on Wednesday night.
James Harden added 21 points, 11 assists and six rebounds for Los Angeles, which won by 59 points to better a 50-point victory (138-88) over the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 10, 2022. The Clippers’ largest lead was 64.
The 59-point margin tied the 10th largest in NBA history.
Leonard shot 8 of 11 from the field in 24 minutes while playing for just the fourth time this season. He was out due to knee issues until earlier this month.
The setback was also the largest in Nets history. The franchise lost by 52 (139-87) to the Houston Rockets on Oct. 18, 1978 when it was known as the New Jersey Nets.
Brooklyn’s 67 points were the fewest scored in an NBA game this season.
Norman Powell had 18 points for the Clippers, who have won two straight games after losing four of five.
Jalen Wilson scored 16 points and DayRon Sharpe had 11 points and a season-best 14 rebounds for Brooklyn, which lost for the 17th time in the past 22 games.
The Nets played without Cameron Johnson (ankle), D’Angelo Russell (shin/hamstring), Cam Thomas (hamstring) and Ben Simmons (back). Brooklyn shot just 30.1 percent from the field and was 5 of 28 (17.9 percent) from 3-point range.
Amir Coffey scored 13 points off the Los Angeles bench, Ivica Zubac added 11 points and nine rebounds and Derrick Jones Jr. also had 11 points. The Clippers shot 54.4 percent from the field and were 12 of 32 (37.5 percent) from 3-point range.
The Nets led 25-24 after Wilson’s floater early in the second quarter before the Clippers began their takedown. Los Angeles outscored Brooklyn 81-30 over the second and third quarters.
Los Angeles used a 14-1 run to take a 43-28 lead and later finished the half with an 11-2 burst to take a 58-35 edge. Harden scored 15 in the half.
The Clippers scored the first 17 points of the third quarter to increase the lead to 40. Powell scored the first eight points of the period.
Leonard later scored the final five points of a 13-0 run as Los Angeles took a 90-38 advantage with 5:48 left in the quarter.
The lead reached 60 when Kai Jones slammed home a dunk to make it 113-53 with 8:11 remaining in the contest.
