Lakers overshadowing Clippers once again

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Clippers, 108-102, on Sunday night. It was their second time beating the Clippers in three nights and their third time in the last four weeks. The win moved the Lakers into second place in the Western Conference and dropped the Clippers to just one half-game ahead of 10th place.

It's a big change from how both teams looked six weeks earlier, when the Clippers dominated the Lakers, 116-102, leading by as many as 26 points in the second half in the Lake Show's first trip to the Clippers' new arena.

Beating the Lakers in the Intuit Dome made it feel like the surprising Clippers were stepping out of the shadow of the team they shared an arena with for a quarter-century. The Clippers had a newer, nicer arena and a better team. While nowhere near the Lakers' popularity, they've continued to build a fan base under free-spending owner Steve Ballmer.

The Clippers had success during the last decade with their Chris Paul-led "Lob City" team while the Lakers struggled. The Kawhi Leonard-Paul George Clippers team won 11 straight against the Lakers from 2020 through 2023, and this year's team moved a half-game ahead of their crosstown rivals with the win.

Then the Luka Doncic trade happened. Suddenly, the Lakers had a 26-year-old superstar to pair with 40-year-old LeBron James, getting better this season while also giving themselves a star for the next decade. This year's Clippers team was a nice surprise, but it's built around 35-year-old James Harden and the 33-year-old, injury-prone Leonard.

One sign the Clippers really wanted Sunday's game was that Leonard played 40 minutes, his biggest minutes total in over a year. He had 33 points and 10 rebounds, but it wasn't enough to overcome Doncic's 29 points and nine assists. Doncic also defeated the Clippers in last year's playoffs and averages 32.4 points, 8.8 rebounds and 9.5 assists against them in his playoff career.

Playing with Doncic has rejuvenated James, who sealed Sunday's game with a chase-down block of Kris Dunn in the final minute that was originally ruled a goal tend, then reversed on review.

The play was a metaphor for the Clippers' status in Los Angeles. They thought they were pulling away from the Lakers this season, but James and company have chased them down. 

The Clippers are now 6.5 games behind the Lakers in the standings and well behind in the esteem of their hometown.