Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, center, sits next to, from left, guard Amir Coffey, and Nicolas Batum during the second half of a preseason NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, in Oceanside, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard will miss the entire preseason due to a right knee injury that calls into question his availability for the start of the regular season.
With Los Angeles’ regular-season opener against the visiting Phoenix Suns set for Oct. 23, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said Monday of the immediate outlook for Leonard, “Continue to keep rehabbing. Keep getting better. Keep checking the boxes.”
Leonard played in just Games 2 and 3 of the Clippers’ six-game loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round of the Western Conference playoffs this past spring because of issues with his right knee.
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Health woes have plagued Leonard, a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and two-time Finals MVP (with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 and the Toronto Raptors in 2019).
In the 2023 playoffs, he sat out the final three games of the Clippers’ five-game, first-round loss to the Suns. Leonard missed Los Angeles’ last eight postseason games in 2021 after hurting his right knee, and he sat out the entire 2021-22 season after having his anterior cruciate ligament surgically repaired.
Leonard, 33, played in 52 regular-season games (50 starts) in 2022-23 and in 68 games (all starts) last season.
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He was named an All-Star for the sixth time in 2023-24, when he wound up with averages of 23.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.6 steals.
For his career, Leonard puts up 20.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.7 steals per contest.
He played with the Spurs from 2011-12 to 2017-18, with the Raptors for just the 2018-19 season and with the Clippers ever since. –Field Level Media