Harden now No. 9; Brown, as expected, fined
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA—James Harden admits watching Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant lead the Los Angeles lakers to multiple championships.
“Me being from LA,” Harden said, calling O’Neal “the most dominant big man in the history of the league.”
His path crossed with the legendary center once again when he passed O’Neal for No. 9 on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
“It’s an honor,” Harden said. “It’s a testament to the hard work that I put in.”
Harden finished with 32 points on Monday night and Kawhi Leonard chipped in 35 as the Los Angeles Clippers tripped the Charlotte Hornets, 117-109, for their fourth win in five games.
Jordan Miller added 14 points and Ivica Zubac had nine points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers.
LaMelo Ball had 25 points and nine rebounds to lead the Hornets in their third loss in four games. Kon Knueppel scored 18 points, Moussa Diabaté had 13 points and 15 rebounds, Brandon Miller also scored 13 and Miles Bridges 11.
Harden, who began the night 14 points behind O’Neal’s 28,596 points for ninth, had 13 in the first half and then moved ahead on a three-pointer early in the third quarter.
After Tre Mann’s three-pointer gave Charlotte a 100-99 lead with 7:18 remaining in the fourth quarter, Harden scored eight points during a 15-1 run that gave Los Angeles a 13-point lead 4:02 later.
In Sacramento, Malik Monk made seven three-pointers and scored 26 points to help the Sacramento Kings to a 124-112 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
DeMar DeRozan had 32 points and six assists for the Kings (10-30), who won their second straight after a seven-game skid. Russell Westbrook, who played 78 games for the Lakers in 2023, added 22 points and seven assists.
It was the Kings’ first home win against the Lakers since March 13, 2024.
Luka Doncic paced the Lakers with 42 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. It was the seventh 40-point game of the season for the NBA’s leading scorer.
LeBron James had 22 points on 8-for-17 shooting that included missing all five attempts from 3-point distance.
In Boston, Celtics star Jaylen Brown got what he expected on Monday when he was fined $35,000 for postgame comments in which he criticized officials and said, “They can fine me whatever they want.”
Brown complained to reporters after Saturday night’s 100-95 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, in which the Celtics shot four free throws and he shot none, that the officiating was inconsistent.
“I’ll accept the fine at this point,” he said, sprinkling expletives into his two-minute rant. “I think they’re a good defensive team, but they ain’t that damn good. I hope somebody can just pull up the clips, because it’s the same (expletive) every time we play a good team. It’s like they refuse to make a call, then call touch fouls on the other end.”
The four-time All-Star has emerged as an NBA MVP candidate since expanding his role this season with the injury of teammate Jayson Tatum. Brown scored 27 points in 43 minutes on Saturday but San Antonio phenom Victor Wembanyama scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half to help the Spurs come back for a victory.
