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Clippers don't need Kawhi Leonard, or Tyronn Lue, to rally and beat Warriors

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Clippers don't need Kawhi Leonard, or Tyronn Lue, to rally and beat Warriors

The momentum the Clippers built from an impressive trip had started to fizzle as they headed toward the break.

And they were trying to find their groove again while playing their last game before Sunday’s All-Star Game without star Kawhi Leonard, who sat out Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors because of a strained left adductor.

Leonard has missed just five games, his 24.1 points per game and 6.1 rebounds sorely missed against another worthy Western Conference foe in the Warriors.

But he had to be happy to see the Clippers overcome coach Tyronn Lue getting ejected in the fourth quarter and Paul George fouling out and rally for a 130-125 win over the Warriors at Chase Center.

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“Yeah, great vibe,” said George, who had 24 points. “You want to be on vacation and feeling good about it. It’s definitely momentum going into the second half of the season. So, it’s great. We know we got our work cut out for the second half. But I thought we ended the first half on a good note.”

The Clippers can credit Norman Powell for helping the cause with his sizzling three-point shooting. He made all four of his three-point attempts in the fourth in scoring 12 of his 21 points, which helped the Clippers come from 14 down in the final 12 minutes.

His second three of the fourth gave the Clippers a 116-115 lead they never lost.

“To me, the fourth quarter is all about winning,” said Powell, who was 8-for-13 from the field, 5-for-7 from three-point range. “I think if you put your mindset to that and take all the distractions and whatever is going on in the game out of your mind, you just focus on making winning plays and the moment in front of you, things like that happen because you’re just playing off instincts and the things you work on. Today was a similar situation.”

The win made the Clippers 2-2 in their last four games. This was after they had a 6-1 record on the road trip at the end of January and the early part of February, which allowed them at one point to post the top record in the West.

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The Clippers (36-17) are third in the uber-competitive Western Conference, 1½-game games behind first-place Minnesota.

Before the Clippers play their next game at second-place Oklahoma City on Feb. 22, Leonard is scheduled to play for the West in the All-Star Game. Lue was “not sure if he’ll play” because of his injury.

“I don’t think it’s serious,” Lue said. “He played through it last game and was experiencing some soreness in the hip and so when the game got out of reach we didn’t bring him back in the fourth quarter, just being smart about it. But he did play through it last game.”

The Clippers also were without guard Bones Hyland and forward P.J. Tucker because they needed an “extra day for some head space,” said a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly.

Lue, who did not talk to the media after the game, was not happy with the officiating, picking up two technical fouls in the fourth quarter, the last with 9:36 left that meant he was ejected from the game with his team down nine points.

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He had watched Mason Plumlee get called for a flagrant foul on Brandin Podziemski in the fourth.

Before Lue left the court, he walked back to the officials and had some words. It was just his second ejection as a coach, his first a Clipper.

“Again, there was a lot of emotion and some frustrations,” said Clippers assistant coach Dan Craig, who took over for Lue. “But we had T’s back. I don’t think he’s ever been thrown out of a game with the Clippers. Again, it was a collective effort, I think just team-wise and I thought the guys really rallied around each other and really just wanted to get this win.”

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Ketel Marte frustrating Diamondbacks by opting to take days off with trade deadline looming: report

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Ketel Marte frustrating Diamondbacks by opting to take days off with trade deadline looming: report

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Arizona Diamondbacks All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte has reportedly been frustrating people within the organization with the MLB trade deadline looming.

Marte, a switch-hitter with power from both sides of the plate, is someone Arizona has tried to trade this past winter despite his talent and six-year extension that kicked in this season.

But USA TODAY reported Marte “continues to frustrate segments of the organization by opting to take days off.” Most recently, Marte decided to sit for last week’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, where superstar Shohei Ohtani was pitching, and he then proceeded to hit a walk-off home run the next day for the D-Backs.

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Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks looks on before the game against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington, on May 30, 2026. (Maddy Grassy/Getty Images)

The reason for Marte missing the game last Wednesday was a mixture of his decision as well as the second baseman dealing with lower-back and hamstring ailments, per Arizona Sports. Marte didn’t want to risk any further injury.

“We’re all human, and we all need a day here and there,” Marte said through a translator following the walk-off homer he hit on Thursday’s game.

KETEL MARTE RECEIVES STANDING OVATION FROM DIAMONDBACKS FANS IN FIRST HOME GAME SINCE CONTROVERSIAL HECKLING

This also isn’t new for Marte, who created some tension in the clubhouse due to absences and off-day requests near the All-Star break. It was reported that Marte’s teammates didn’t appreciate trying to time his off-days, leading to an apology later on.

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Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks bats during the first inning against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington, on May 30, 2026. (Maddy Grassy/Getty Images)

With Marte being involved in trade rumors in the past, they will certainly pick up with MLB’s trade deadline scheduled for Aug. 3 this year. It’s later than usual, but with teams dealing with injuries as well as trying to bolster their lineups, rotations and bullpens, players with Marte’s talent will surely lead to calls to those in the Arizona front office.

Marte should be sold at a high price, if at all, given he is under contract through the 2030 campaign at a relatively low price after signing his six-year, $116.5 million contract. He also has a player option for the 2031 season, where he will be age 37.

While second base is his usual spot on the field, Marte has played shortstop as well as center field in his 12-year career. The Dominican Republic product has earned three All-Star nods, including each of the past two seasons.

Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the Colorado Rockies during the fourth inning at Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz., on May 23, 2026. (Norm Hall/Getty Images)

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This year, Marte is slashing .250/.304/.450 with a .754 OPS — the lowest mark since his 2022 campaign in Arizona (.727). He has hit 11 homers, driven in 37 runs and scored 37 times across 60 games.     

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The Times’ softball coach of the year: Katie Stith of JSerra

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The Times’ softball coach of the year: Katie Stith of JSerra

Katie Stith, the softball coach at JSerra High, can finally take a bow and become the most famous Stith in the family — at least for a couple weeks.

Imagine being the daughter of legendary club softball coach Mike Stith (OC Batbusters), then going into coaching. Katie did just that and has earned the spotlight after guiding JSerra to its first Southern Section Division 1 championship.

She has been selected The Times’ coach of the year for 2026.

It was her eighth season, and if you want to play in Division 1 in Southern California, you have to go through the gauntlet of powerhouses, from Norco to Orange Lutheran to Murrieta Mesa.

JSerra navigated a difficult regular-season schedule, then avoided upsets in the playoffs. The team finished 25-8 and had wins over Norco, La Mirada, Oaks Christian, Orange Lutheran and Garden Grove Pacifica — all prominent programs.

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She was able to rely on pitcher Liliana Escobar and catcher Annabel Raftery in those pressure-packed moments from the first game to the last.

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Danish soccer star suffers medical scare during match years after on-field cardiac arrest

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Danish soccer star suffers medical scare during match years after on-field cardiac arrest

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Denmark’s Christian Eriksen collapsed during his team’s international friendly match against Ukraine on Sunday.

Eriksen, who has a history of collapsing on the pitch, did so again as help rushed out to meet him near midfield.

Thankfully, the Danish Football Union said in a statement that he was “conscious and feeling well under the circumstances.” The 34-year-old’s incident led to the game being abandoned.

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Christian Eriksen of Denmark looks on during the UEFA International Friendly match between DR Congo and Denmark at Stade Maurice Dufrasne in Liege, Belgium, on June 3, 2026. (Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto)

Denmark was up, 2-1, on Ukraine in the 61st minute at the time of Eriksen’s collapse.

Eriksen previously starred for Tottenham and Manchester United in the English Premier League. He currently plays for VfL Wolfsburg in 2. Bundesliga.

SOCCER PLAYER DIES AT 21 AFTER COLLISION WITH OPPONENT DURING MATCH

During the European Championship between Denmark and Finland in June 2021, play was suspended after a terrifying scene where Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch in the first half of the game.

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Play immediately came to a halt at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, where Eriksen was lying on the grass unresponsive. CPR was needed to resuscitate him, as medical staff and teammates made a circle around his body in clear distress, hoping for the best.

Denmark’s and Ukraine’s players accompany Christian Eriksen to an ambulance during a friendly match at Odense Stadium in Denmark on June 7, 2026, after he collapsed on the field. (Bo Amstrup/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images)

Eriksen received 10 minutes of medical care and was later taken off the pitch on a stretcher with an oxygen mask around his mouth. Images began to circulate on social media at the time, showing Eriksen awake and having a hand on his forehead.

Eriksen was later transferred to a hospital and was stabilized.

Since that moment, Eriksen was fitted with a heart-starting device called an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.

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Denmark’s team doctor Morten Boesen released a statement via multiple outlets, stating Eriksen’s “pacemaker is responding as it should.”

Christian Eriksen of Denmark looks on during a UEFA international friendly between DR Congo and Denmark at Stade Maurice Dufrasne in Liege, Belgium, on June 3, 2026. (Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto)

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“He was briefly unconscious, but regained consciousness very quickly, and we were quickly in contact with him,” Boesen’s statement read.

“He will not undergo further examinations at the hospital to determine what caused the incident. We are in ongoing contact with him and the doctors at the hospital. But Christian is doing well, and he asked me to send his regards to all the players and tell them that he was okay.”

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