Kawhi Leonard will reportedly miss the Los Angeles Clippers’ NBA season opener against the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday – extending the forward’s absence to more than six months.
Two-time NBA finals Most Valuable Player Leonard is still recovering from inflammation in his right knee and is out indefinitely, ESPN has said.
The 33-year-old has missed the Clippers’ entire pre-season and been unable to participate in contact training, last appearing against Dallas in the play-offs on April 26.
‘Whi Wednesday 🖐️
’23-24 Season Recap: Kawhi Leonard pic.twitter.com/Njbq6tnHiP
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) May 22, 2024
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Kawhi Leonard injury
“He has not been a part of what we’ve been doing on a daily basis,” Clippers assistant coach Brian Shaw said on Wednesday.
“I know the company line has been that we’re going to be patient with him, so he’s doing everything that he can to rehab it and strengthen that knee on his own with our medical staff. And we’re just dealing with the guys that we have [available].”
Leonard missed the 2021-22 season with a torn ACL in his right knee and tore his right meniscus during the 2023 play-offs.
Speaking earlier this month, the Team USA 2024 Olympic Games basketball pick said he was feeling “good”.
“I’ve just been taking my time and getting stronger,” added Leonard. “We’ve just been taking it slow, day by day, trying to get me back on the floor.
“It’s not really based on how I’m feeling; it’s more listening to what the doctors say I can do to prevent [injuries].”
the one where Kawhi Leonard dropped a season-high 41 points 🖐️#BestofNBA pic.twitter.com/kyAlAjD47S
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Kawhi Leonard stats
Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank described himself as “very disappointed” when Team USA released Leonard on July 10 despite acknowledging that he “felt ready to compete”.
“Kawhi has been ramping up for the Olympics over the past several weeks and had a few strong practices in Las Vegas,” a national team statement said at the time.
“He respects that USA Basketball and the Clippers determined it’s in his best interest to spend the remainder of the summer preparing for the upcoming season rather than participating in the Olympic Games in Paris.”
Leonard has missed 179 out of 435 games since signing an initial three-year contract for a reported $103 million in July 2019.
He was an NBA champion for a second time the previous season – his only campaign with the Toronto Raptors – and first won the title in 2014 with San Antonio Spurs, who he played for between 2011 and 2018.
