Paul, Griffin Lead Clippers Past Suns

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Chris Paul scored 24 points, Blake Griffin had 21 points and 11 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the winless Phoenix Suns 116-98 on Monday night.

DeAndre Jordan added 19 points and 11 rebounds as the Clippers relied on their Big Three in improving to 3-0 this season.

Brandon Knight had 18 points for the Suns (0-4), who gave Los Angeles a little scare on Halloween when they cut the lead to 56-55 in the third quarter. The Clippers pulled away after that.

Griffin scored 15 points in the first half, when Los Angeles built as much as a 13-point lead.

The Clippers' defense was stout and forced the Suns into 14 first-half turnovers. Los Angeles closed with an 18-3 run to lead 48-36 at halftime.

Jordan entertained with an assortment of dunks and layups despite playing with a sprained right thumb that was wrapped in tape. Early in the first quarter, he grimaced and grabbed his thumb when he missed an alley-oop. But he remained in the game and never showed any signs of a problem afterward.

Phoenix guard Devin Booker missed the game with a sprained toe.

Four of the five Clippers starters had scored in double figures by the end of the third quarter. Los Angeles' offense has been slow to catch up with its defense early this season, but the Suns were no match on the defensive end as the Clippers got into a rhythm.

Suns center Tyson Chandler fouled out with 7:51 left.

TIP-INS

Suns: Booker, third on the team in scoring, was a game-time decision. Beforehand, coach Earl Watson said: "If he doesn't play, he's really in pain."

Clippers: Jordan injured his thumb Sunday. He left the game but returned to play in a win against Utah. X-rays on the thumb were negative. Los Angeles coach Doc Rivers said he would monitor the situation throughout the game.

BACK-TO-BACKS

Both the Suns and Clippers were playing back-to-back games for the first time this season. The Suns hosted the Warriors on Sunday and lost 106-100. The Clippers played an afternoon game Sunday followed by a night game. Rivers said he doesn't mind that kind of schedule.

UP NEXT

Suns: Return home Wednesday to host Portland. Phoenix won the season series 2-1 last year.

Clippers: Host the Thunder on Wednesday. Oklahoma City star Russell Westbrook is averaging 38.7 points per game. He scored 51 against the Suns.