Clippers star James Harden handles the ball as the Atlanta Hawks’ Zaccharie Risacher defends during the second half on Saturday night at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers reacts from the bench against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers drives to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers reacts after a basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers passes behind the back past Onyeka Okongwu #17 of the Atlanta Hawks as De’Andre Hunter #12 of the Atlanta Hawks looks on in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers passes around Onyeka Okongwu #17 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers passes over Dyson Daniels #5 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kevin Porter Jr. #77 of the Clippers slam dunks against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kevin Porter Jr. #77 of the Clippers drives to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers shoots over Onyeka Okongwu #17 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Derrick Jones Jr. #55 of the Clippers drives to the basket against De’Andre Hunter #12 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Clippers owner Steve Ballmer looks on in the second half of a NBA basketball game between the LA Clippers and the Atlanta Hawks at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers controls the ball past Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Amir Coffey #7 of the Clippers passes around Onyeka Okongwu #17 of the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Terance Mann #14 of the Clippers slam dunks against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Terance Mann #14 of the Clippers reacts after a slam dunk against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers drives to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the second half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Dyson Daniels #5 of the Atlanta Hawks drives to the basket against Derrick Jones Jr. #55 of the Clippers in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers drives to the basket against Dyson Daniels #5 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Head coach Tyronn Lue of the Clippers reacts against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers drives to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks slam dunks against the Clippers in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers reacts after a basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers prior to a NCAA men’s basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Norman Powell #24 of the Clippers reacts after a three point basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers controls the ball against Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Derrick Jones Jr. #55 of the Clippers slam dunks against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) James Harden #1 of the Clippers reacts after a basket against the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) The Clippers bench in the first half of a NBA basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers controls the ball against Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers reaches for the loose ball against Vit Krejci #27 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Clippers fights for control against Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Kris Dunn #8 of the Clippers fouls Clint Capela #15 of the Atlanta Hawks in the first half of a NBA basketball game at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Actress Jaime Gertz, left, with her husband and owner of the Atlanta Hawks Tony Ressler during a NBA basketball game between the Clippers and the Atlanta Hawks at Intuit Dome in Inglewood on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG) Show Caption1 of 35Clippers star James Harden handles the ball as the Atlanta Hawks’ Zaccharie Risacher defends during the second half on Saturday night at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/SCNG) Expand INGLEWOOD — He hit a 3-pointer from the left wing on his first shot. He then found Norman Powell in the corner for his first assist and followed with a miss from 6 feet. And with that, Kawhi Leonard’s comeback was officially rolling. Leonard made his season debut Saturday night in a 131-105 victory over the Atlanta Hawks after missing the team’s first 34 games. And while it wasn’t perfect, it was both a start and an end to a long road back from troubling knee issues. Leonard, who was greeted by the near-sellout Intuit Dome crowd with a loud ovation, finished his first game in 10 months with 12 points on 4-of-11 shooting, three rebounds and one assist in 19 minutes. Leonard had said his plan was to be ready for the season opener, but the inflammation in his right knee never truly ceased after flaring up on March 31 against the Charlotte Hornets. He sat out the final eight regular-season games last spring and appeared in only two games in the Clippers’ 4-2 first-round playoff loss against the Dallas Mavericks. Leonard’s knee problems kept him off the Olympic team and forced him to sit on the bench in street clothes for the first two-plus months of this season. Leonard, who has missed 290 regular-season games over the last eight years, including all of the 2021-22 season, seemed relieved to finally move from the training room to the court again after this latest frustration. “(There) was nothing hard about playing tonight. We did the right steps to get me to this point, and playing basketball was the easy part of it,” Leonard said. “This is what I love to do. The hard part is not playing and having to rehab and not competing with my teammates.” Leonard’s 19 minutes were by design, and he will continue to be on a minutes restriction for the foreseeable future, which is just fine with the two-time NBA Finals MVP, who has had two surgeries and another procedure on his right knee. “We’re still easing me into the game,” Leonard said. “We are not on no one’s timeframe. We know what’s ahead of us and we have to keep building in the right direction. So, we are facing it (comeback) like it was a preseason game tonight and we’ll keep moving the same way until I’m able to build up my minutes.” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue and the rest of the team were understandably excited to see the two-time NBA champion back on the floor whether it was for nine minutes or 19. Leonard gives the Clippers another scoring threat, someone who opposing teams need to guard, leaving others open to score. “With his presence on the floor, it makes it a lot easier for everybody else, so it was good to have him,” Lue said. “Now he’s got to continue to keep building off of it. “We are treating this as a preseason for him until he gets his legs up under him; make sure he comes out of the game tonight feeling good. And our goal is just to keep progressing every game and so tonight was a good start.” Lue started Leonard in place of Derrick Jones Jr., keeping Kris Dunn in the starting lineup. Jones came off the bench and scored 12 points. “That was amazing just to be out there (with him),” Jones said. “I’m just happy he got his first shot to go down. When you come back from an injury or a long layoff, it always boosts you up a little bit. But once he got that, he started rolling, so he’s good.” The rest of the team played well, too. Norman Powell got back on track after a 1-for-11 performance in the previous game and scored a team-high 20 points and had four rebounds. Ivica Zubac added 18 points and 18 rebounds, while James Harden had 10 points and 15 assists. Amir Coffey added 17 points. Terance Mann scored 12 points and had three rebounds in his first game in a month. He fractured the middle finger on his left hand in a Dec. 4 game against Portland. The Clippers outshot the Hawks, 55.2% to 43.2%, and went 13 for 36 from 3-point range (36.1%). Three-time All-Star Trae Young led the Hawks with 20 points and 14 assists “He draws so much attention – double-teams and things like that – so I’m able to finally get some catch-and-shoot 3s, playing off rotations, being able to track the basket,” Powell said. “So, it’s a lot easier than just defensively where we’ve been playing. “I think it fits him perfectly and it makes it hard for teams. You got so many guys that can switch and guard and defend one-on-one and now you got the help side. So, I’m really excited. The first game look really good, so we just continue to build on that.” Whether it was Leonard’s presence, or the “great vibe” Mann talked about in the locker room before the game, the Clippers (20-15) came out inspired against the Hawks (18-18). After back-to-back lopsided losses, the Clippers opened a 29-14 lead before Atlanta closed the first quarter on a 14-0 run. The Clippers, looking to avoid the kind of meltdowns they experienced in losses to the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, went on a 34-11 run to blow the game open with a 63-39 lead with 3:22 left in the first half. They led 74-54 at halftime. Harden had 13 assists in the first half for the third time in his career. His career-high for any half is 14. The Clippers kept the pressure on Atlanta in the second half. With four starters on the bench, they managed to maintain a 20-plus-point lead in the fourth quarter. Related Articles Clippers | Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard plans to return Saturday against Hawks Clippers | Harden-less Clippers can’t maintain fast start in loss to Thunder Clippers | Cold-shooting Clippers routed by Victor Wembanyama, Spurs Clippers | Alexander: Intuit Dome is unique, yet follows an LA tradition Clippers | Powell, Harden rally Clippers past struggling Pelicans Lue cautioned the team not to count on Leonard to handle the bulk of the scoring, which would have put undue pressure on the six-time All-Star. “He’s a great player, so he’s going to find ways to be aggressive, score the basketball,” Lue said. “But we just don’t want to come back and force-feeding him and standing around. “So, the biggest thing for us is just to continue to play the game. Play the game the right way.” Granted it was one game in Leonard’s comeback and the first with the roster entirely healthy. Can it last? “Yeah, I think we have another level we could get to maybe two more levels,” Mann said. “Kawhi is just getting his feet under him and we as a team are just getting our feet under us with him back. So, there’s definitely other levels we can get to.”