INGLEWOOD — On Saturday, Clippers star James Harden launched another of his signature shoes, the Cyber Metallic, a fusion of fashion and performance with a futuristic feel. It is his ninth shoe for Adidas. “Man, it’s a testament to the work we’ve been putting in,” said Harden, who wore the shiny shoes while scoring 40 points Saturday in the Clippers 127-117 victory against the Milwaukee Bucks. “Myself and Adidas have an unbelievable partnership and especially these last few years we’ve been creating some heat, some real disruptive shoes that I think a lot of people can relate to.” His shoe company isn’t the only partnership that Harden has worked hard to create. While his teamwork with center Ivica Zubac on pick-and-rolls is well-documented, the nine-time All-Star has developed another on-court connection with fellow guard Norman Powell this season. Powell moved into the starting lineup alongside Harden after Paul George signed a free-agent deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. It was a lot like getting to know a new roommate, learning their likes and dislikes, and whether you can trust them. “We’re on the court a lot more, you know what I mean? So, the communication, the trust to having each other’s back is there a lot more than it has been since I’ve been here,” Harden said. “And vice versa. Trust me, I trust him. Whether it’s offensively, defensively, and I think not just between us two. I think that’s the beauty of our team and that’s why we’re so successful.” Harden and Powell took over the game in the second half against the Bucks, each taking turns to score baskets, either from beyond the arc or driving in for layups. The two combined for 25 points, with Powell posting 14 points and Harden 11 in a six-minute span of the fourth quarter. “A lot of buckets, man. They took over in the second half. It was fun to watch. It was fun,” Zubac said. “James was cooking just ISO, one-on-one. It’s fun when he goes into that mode and kind of just scores like four or five possessions in a row. … Got to the rim a lot and it was fun, man. It was fun.” GOAL-ORIENTED While his numbers were unusually low (12 and 10) Zubac recorded his 27th double-double of the season on Saturday, tying him with Atlanta Hawks’ Trey Young and Alperen Sengun of the Houston Rockets for the seventh place on this season’s double-doubles leaderboard. Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis leads the league with 40, which includes six triple-doubles. Zubac is sixth in the league with 12.4 boards a game. For Zubac, 27 double-doubles aren’t nearly enough. “I’m out there a lot, so I should be getting double-doubles, but every year I’m trying to get as many as I can,” he said. “And I’m glad I got to 27 this early but I’m trying to get 50. So, hopefully I set a little goal for myself.” Reaching the century mark in points and rebounds isn’t the 7-footer’s only goals this season. A NBA championship is always a priority, but this season, Zubac is eyeing a spot on the NBA All-Defensive team. He currently has 51 blocks and 30 steals on the league’s second-best defensive team. “I want to be up there. That’s been a goal for a while and this year we’re having a great defensive year, and we got to keep it up. So, I think I’m a big part of that and I think I can be one of the best defenders in the league.”