Bennedict Mathurin went off in his first home game in a Los Angeles Clippers uniform, as he had 38 points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals on 12-for-22 shooting from the field and 12-for-13 shooting from the free throw line in 34 minutes off the bench during their 115-114 win over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday evening.
By doing so, Mathurin set the new scoring record for most points by a Los Angeles Clippers player in their home debut, surpassing Jamal Crawford (29 points). After the game, the 23-year-old paid homage to his head coach, Ty Lue.
“It’s going to be awesome. He might end up being my best friend. He told me to be aggressive and be myself. I feel like he really knows my game. He really knows what I can do. Glad to have him as a coach… We can do a lot of great things,” Mathurin told SI’s Joey Linn.
“It’s fun man. It’s fun to see how my teammates were happy for me. Just winning my second game. So far so good,” he added. “It (playing at the Intuit Dome) was dope man. It was very, very nice. The Wall is great man.”
Los Angeles Clippers News: Kawhi Leonard delivers encouraging verdict on Bennedict Mathurin
Kawhi Leonard voiced his seal of approval on Bennedict Mathurin, whom the Los Angeles Clippers acquired from the Indiana Pacers (alongside Isaiah Jackson) in exchange for Ivica Zubac, following the latter’s superb home debut on Thursday.
“He’s been doing it. It’s great to have another scorer that can get 30 points. If you watch him in the Finals, he was doing it in the Finals last year. All year last year with the Pacers. It’s great to have him,” Leonard said of Mathurin.
Leonard was the Los Angeles Clippers’ second-leading scorer behind Mathurin, as the two-time NBA champion contributed 23 points, four rebounds, and three assists on 8-for-18 shooting from the field in 33 minutes.
