Game ID: 22500422
Houston Rockets @ LA Clippers
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 at 10:30 PM ET
Intuit Dome, Inglewood, CA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LAC 29 34 35 30 128HOU 35 23 24 26 108
HOU @ LAC ScoutingHOU @ LAC Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
LAC availability going into 12/11 · 4 days' restOUT Jones Jr. missed 11 since 11/17, out tonight
OUT Miller missed 3 since 12/03, out tonight
OUT Niederhäuser missed 2 since 12/05, out tonight
BACK Lopez back 12/06 after 6, 10 min since (44% of 22)
BACK Bogdanović back 12/06 after 8, 23 min since (116% of 20)
NEW Batum 18 to 23 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 12/15 · 3 days' restOUT Jones Jr. missed 12 since 11/17, out tonight
OUT Miller missed 4 since 12/03, returns tonight: 22 min (99% of 22)
OUT Niederhäuser missed 3 since 12/05, returns tonight: 4 min (36% of 10)
BACK Lopez back 12/06 after 6, 12 min since (53% of 22)
BACK Bogdanović back 12/06 after 8, 24 min since (120% of 20)
NEW Batum 18 to 23 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 12/18 · 2 days' restOUT Jones Jr. missed 13 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Miller back 12/15 after 4, 22 min since (99% of 22)
BACK Lopez back 12/06 after 6, 12 min since (53% of 22)
BACK Bogdanović back 12/06 after 8, 22 min since (112% of 20)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/15 after 3, 4 min since (36% of 10)
NEW Batum 18 to 24 min over the last 4
LAC availability going into 12/20 · 1 day's restOUT Jones Jr. missed 14 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Miller back 12/15 after 4, 21 min since (96% of 22)
BACK Lopez back 12/06 after 6, 13 min since (58% of 22)
BACK Bogdanović back 12/06 after 8, 23 min since (115% of 20)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/15 after 3, 4 min since (36% of 10)
NEW Batum 18 to 24 min over the last 4
LAC availability going into 12/23 · 2 days' restOUT Jones Jr. missed 15 since 11/17, out tonight
OUT Niederhäuser missed 2 since 12/18, returns tonight: 15 min (149% of 10)
BACK Miller back 12/15 after 4, 15 min since (68% of 22)
BACK Lopez back 12/06 after 6, 16 min since (72% of 22)
BACK Bogdanović back 12/06 after 8, 22 min since (110% of 20)
LAC availability going into 12/26 · 2 days' restOUT Jones Jr. missed 16 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Miller back 12/15 after 4, 12 min since (55% of 22)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/15 after 3, 10 min since (92% of 10)
NEW Leonard 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Batum 18 to 23 min over the last 4
LAC availability going into 12/28 · 1 day's restOUT Zubac missed 2 since 12/23, out tonight
OUT Jones Jr. missed 17 since 11/17, returns tonight: 18 min (68% of 27)
BACK Miller back 12/15 after 4, 13 min since (57% of 22)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/15 after 3, 10 min since (102% of 10)
NEW Leonard 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Batum 18 to 24 min over the last 4
LAC availability going into 12/30 · 1 day's restOUT Zubac missed 3 since 12/23, out tonight
BACK Jones Jr. back 12/28 after 17, 18 min since (68% of 27)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/23 after 2, 13 min since (129% of 10)
NEW Leonard 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Lopez 22 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Batum 18 to 25 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 1/01 · 1 day's restOUT Zubac missed 4 since 12/23, out tonight
OUT Bogdanović missed 2 since 12/28, out tonight
BACK Jones Jr. back 12/28 after 17, 19 min since (71% of 27)
BACK Niederhäuser back 12/23 after 2, 16 min since (158% of 10)
NEW Leonard 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Lopez 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Batum 18 to 25 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/15 · 3 days' restOUT Eason missed 11 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 22 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Sengun back 12/11 after 2, 36 min since (107% of 34)
NEW Holiday 14 to 25 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/18 · 2 days' restOUT Eason missed 12 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 23 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Sengun back 12/11 after 2, 39 min since (116% of 34)
NEW Okogie 17 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 14 to 20 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/20 · 1 day's restOUT Eason missed 13 since 11/16, out tonight
OUT Finney-Smith missed 24 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Sengun back 12/11 after 2, 38 min since (113% of 34)
NEW Okogie 17 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Holiday 14 to 19 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/21 · back-to-backOUT Eason missed 14 since 11/16, returns tonight: 16 min (59% of 26)
OUT Finney-Smith missed 25 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Sengun back 12/11 after 2, 36 min since (107% of 34)
NEW Smith Jr. 36 to 41 min over the last 5
NEW Okogie 17 to 26 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's restOUT Finney-Smith missed 26 since 10/21, out tonight
BACK Sengun back 12/11 after 2, 37 min since (110% of 34)
BACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 16 min since (59% of 26)
NEW Durant 36 to 42 min over the last 5
NEW Okogie 17 to 28 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Finney-Smith missed 27 since 10/21, returns tonight: 13 min (81% of 16)
BACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 17 min since (64% of 26)
NEW Okogie 17 to 26 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restBACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 20 min since (76% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 13 min since (81% of 16)
NEW Okogie 17 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restBACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 20 min since (77% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (90% of 16)
HOU availability going into 1/01 · 2 days' restOUT Sengun missed 2 since 12/27, returns tonight: 34 min (100% of 34)
BACK Eason back 12/21 after 14, 22 min since (83% of 26)
BACK Finney-Smith back 12/25 after 27, 15 min since (93% of 16)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 1-4 over their last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 111, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 23 free throws a game; Leonard at 24 and Harden at 22 a game. Without Jones Jr. (15 straight). 2 days' rest. Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 120, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 24 free throws a game; Durant at 26 and Sengun at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. Without Finney-Smith (26 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-10 a night and the Clippers plus-0 and the arc, Houston at 42 percent from three to the Clippers' 35. Call it Houston 116, the Clippers 113, the Clippers keeping it close.
12/11 @ HOU 113-115 — LAC notes
LAC lost 113-115. LAC shot 50% (39 of 78) to HOU's 46%, 14 of 38 from three. The glass went 28-51 against them. Zubac led with 33 (13 of 14, 7 of 11 at the line); Leonard added 24, Harden 22. Q2 was theirs, 25-22, but the other 3 periods went 93-88 against them. Sanders's -12 in 9 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/15 vs MEM 103-121 — LAC notes
LAC lost 103-121. LAC shot 46% (37 of 80) to MEM's 52%, 13 of 36 from three. LAC turned it over 18 times to MEM's 11, and MEM turned those into 10 steals. Leonard led with 21 (9 of 18, 1 of 5 from three); Dunn added 17, Harden 13. Q1 was theirs, 27-25, but the other 3 periods went 96-76 against them. Brown's -27 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/18 @ OKC 101-122 — LAC notes
LAC lost 101-122. LAC shot 49% (37 of 76) to OKC's 48%, 10 of 32 from three, and went to the line 22 times to OKC's 16 — 17 points from the stripe to their 13. LAC turned it over 28 times to OKC's 8, and OKC turned those into 18 steals. The glass went 49-38 for them. Leonard led with 22 (9 of 17, 0 of 5 from three); Collins added 20, Dunn 14. Q1 was theirs, 33-27, but the other 3 periods went 95-68 against them. They led by as many as 11. Batum's -28 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/20 vs LAL 103-88 — LAC notes
LAC won 103-88. LAC shot 42% (34 of 80) to LAL's 39%, 16 of 43 from three. LAC turned it over 16 times to LAL's 11. Leonard led with 32 (8 of 24, 4 of 12 from three, 12 of 12 at the line); Harden added 21, Collins 17. The hinge was Q1, 28-15: from level to 13 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Collins was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
12/23 vs HOU 128-108 — LAC notes
LAC won 128-108. LAC shot 55% (42 of 77) to HOU's 50%, 20 of 37 from three, and went to the line 27 times to HOU's 18 — 24 points from the stripe to their 13. LAC turned it over 8 times to HOU's 13. Leonard led with 41 (16 of 23, 4 of 5 from three); Harden added 29, Collins 13. The hinge was Q2, 34-23: LAC came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 5, and the lead reached 26. Leonard was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
12/26 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 30 free throws a game; Sharpe at 26 and Avdija at 26 a game. Without Holiday (18 straight), Grant (3 straight), Henderson (30 straight). 2 days' rest. The Clippers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 111, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Leonard at 28 and Harden at 21 a game. Without Jones Jr. (16 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Portland wins, and the game turns on the line, where Portland takes 30 free throws a game to the Clippers' 23 and the arc, the Clippers at 39 percent from three to Portland's 34. Call it Portland 116, the Clippers 113, the Clippers keeping it close.
12/28 vs DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 24 free throws a game; Leonard at 29 and Harden at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Zubac (2 straight), Jones Jr. (17 straight). One day's rest. Detroit comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 112, shooting 46 percent and 32 from three, 25 free throws a game; Cunningham at 23 and Duren at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: Detroit wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, the Clippers at 42 percent from three to Detroit's 32 and the glass, where Detroit has been plus-8 a night and the Clippers plus-1. Call it Detroit 115, the Clippers 113, the Clippers keeping it close.
12/30 vs SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 104, shooting 49 percent and 43 from three, 26 free throws a game; Leonard at 36 and Harden at 28 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Zubac (3 straight). One day's rest. Sacramento comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 118, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 26 free throws a game; DeRozan at 22 and Westbrook at 18 a game. Without Murray (2 straight), LaVine (6 straight), Sabonis (18 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Clippers win, and the game turns on the arc, the Clippers at 43 percent from three to Sacramento's 33 and the defense, the Clippers allowing 104 a night to Sacramento's 118. Call it the Clippers 117, Sacramento 110.
1/01 vs UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 5-0 over their last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 98, shooting 49 percent and 44 from three, 28 free throws a game; Leonard at 38 and Harden at 27 a game. That is 5 straight wins. They have lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Zubac (4 straight), Bogdanović (2 straight). One day's rest. Utah comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 129, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 26 free throws a game; George at 28 and Markkanen at 27 a game. Without Kessler (27 straight), Bailey (2 straight), Harkless (18 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Clippers win, and the game turns on the defense, the Clippers allowing 98 a night to Utah's 129 and the turnovers, Utah giving it away 14 times a game to the Clippers' 10. Call it the Clippers 123, Utah 113, the Clippers by 10.
12/15 @ DEN 125-128 — HOU notes
HOU lost 125-128 in 1 overtime. HOU took 8 more shots (93 to 85), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 51% to DEN's 51%, 12 of 25 from three, and got to the line 26 times to DEN's 33. HOU turned it over 16 times to DEN's 10, and DEN turned those into 10 steals. Sengun led with 33 (14 of 27, 5 of 6 at the line); Durant added 25, Smith Jr. 16. Q1 was theirs, 30-24, but the other 4 periods went 104-95 against them. Adams's -8 in 16 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/18 @ NOP 128-133 — HOU notes
HOU lost 128-133 in 1 overtime. HOU took 10 more shots (107 to 97), fed by 25 offensive rebounds, but shot 47% to NOP's 51%, 10 of 32 from three. HOU turned it over 18 times to NOP's 12, and NOP turned those into 15 steals. The glass went 58-41 for them. Durant led with 32 (12 of 15, 4 of 6 from three); Sengun added 28, Thompson 23. Q2 was theirs, 34-21, but the other 4 periods went 112-94 against them. They led by as many as 25.
12/20 @ DEN 115-101 — HOU notes
HOU won 115-101. HOU shot 51% (39 of 77) to DEN's 40%, 19 of 35 from three. HOU turned it over 19 times to DEN's 11, and DEN turned those into 9 steals. Durant led with 31 (8 of 14, 5 of 6 from three, 10 of 11 at the line); Sheppard added 28, Smith Jr. 22. The hinge was Q2, 27-16: HOU came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 8, and the lead reached 21. Sengun was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
12/21 @ SAC 124-125 — HOU notes
HOU lost 124-125 in 1 overtime. HOU shot 48% (45 of 94) to SAC's 46%, 16 of 38 from three, and got to the line 24 times to SAC's 36. Sengun led with 28 (12 of 17, 4 of 6 at the line); Durant added 24, Thompson 18. Q2 was theirs, 37-27, but the other 4 periods went 98-87 against them. They led by as many as 14. Smith Jr.'s -20 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/23 @ LAC 108-128 — HOU notes
HOU lost 108-128. HOU took 9 more shots (86 to 77), fed by 15 offensive rebounds, but shot 50% to LAC's 55%, 9 of 30 from three, and got to the line 18 times to LAC's 27. HOU turned it over 13 times to LAC's 8. Durant led with 22 (8 of 15, 1 of 4 from three); Thompson added 19, Sengun 19. Q1 was theirs, 35-29, but the other 3 periods went 99-73 against them. Sheppard's -21 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/25 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 123, shooting 46 percent and 30 from three, 31 free throws a game; Dončić at 30 and James at 26 a game. Without Hachimura (2 straight), Vincent (3 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 123, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 24 free throws a game; Durant at 27 and Sengun at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Finney-Smith (27 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Houston at 41 percent from three to the Lakers' 30 and the line, where the Lakers take 31 free throws a game to Houston's 24. Call it Houston 119, the Lakers 118, the Lakers keeping it close.
12/27 vs CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 117, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Durant at 27 and Thompson at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 128, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 18 free throws a game; Mitchell at 31 and Garland at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-10 a night and Cleveland minus-2 and the defense, Houston allowing 117 a night to Cleveland's 128. Call it Houston 122, Cleveland 118, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/29 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 110, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 21 free throws a game; Durant at 26 and Thompson at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Indiana comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 125, shooting 44 percent and 30 from three, 23 free throws a game; Siakam at 21 and McConnell at 15 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Sheppard (10 straight), Toppin (29 straight), Isa. Jackson (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-8 a night and Indiana minus-8 and the arc, Houston at 42 percent from three to Indiana's 30. Call it Houston 121, Indiana 109, Houston by 12.
1/01 @ BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Brooklyn comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 104, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 27 and Dëmin at 16 a game. Without Williams (2 straight), Saraf (7 straight), Martin (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 114, shooting 52 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Durant at 26 and Sengun at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 11 a night. Without Sengun (2 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-11 a night and Brooklyn plus-0 and the defense, Brooklyn allowing 104 a night to Houston's 114. Call it Houston 113, Brooklyn 112, Brooklyn keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
LACBB B. Bogdanović
BL B. Lopez
BO Bogdanovic
CC C. Christie
JC J. Collins
JH J. Harden
JM J. Miller
KB K. Brown
KD K. Dunn
KL K. Leonard
KS K. Sanders
NB N. Batum
YN Y. Niederhäuser
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
CC C. Capela
JD J. Davison
JG J. Green
JO J. Okogie
JS J. Smith Jr.
JT J. Tate
KD K. Durant
RS R. Sheppard
SA S. Adams
TE T. Eason
LAC/HOU the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Leonard's 41-point game powers Clippers to a 128-108 victory over the Rockets
LOS ANGELES -- — Kawhi Leonard scored 41 points and James Harden added 29 as the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Houston Rockets 128-108 on Tuesday night.
Leonard shot 16 for 23 from the field and 4 for 5 from long distance as the Clippers won consecutive games for just the second time this season. Los Angeles was coming off a 103-88 win over the Lakers on Saturday that snapped a five-game skid. The Clippers also won consecutive games Oct. 24-26, against Phoenix and Portland.
Harden, who shot 7 for 14 from the field and 3 for 8 from long distance, was helped by 12-for-13 shooting from the line.
John Collins and Kobe Sanders added 13 points apiece and Kris Dunn scored 11 for Los Angeles, which shot 54% (20 for 37) from 3-point range.
Kevin Durant scored 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting, and Alperen Sengun finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds for Houston, which was 9 for 30 (30%) from long distance.
Amen Thompson added 19 points for Houston, and Jabari Smith Jr. scored 16 for the Rockets, who have lost four of their last five games.
The Clippers, who trailed by six points after one period, outscored Houston 34-23 in the second and led 63-58 at the break. The Rockets were helped by 10-for-22 shooting from 3-point range in the first half. Leonard had 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting in the opening quarters and Harden scored 11.
Durant had 17 first-half points to lead the Rockets. Sengun scored 15 and Smith had 11.
The Clippers led 98-82 after three periods.
Up next Rockets: At Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.