Fans of the Los Angeles Clippers can feel relieved.
According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Kawhi Leonard is not expected to be out for a long time with the back injury that forced him to leave the Clippers’ game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on March 12.
Speaking on ESPN’s “NBA Countdown” on March 13, Woj disclosed that Leonard is traveling with the Clippers for their consecutive away games against the Chicago Bulls on March 14 and the New Orleans Pelicans on March 15. e
“I think people became more worried [about his injury] because Kawhi Leonard left the arena last night [March 12] with these back spasms,” Woj said. “I was told simply that it was uncomfortable for him to sit in the arena and he just went home. But there is not significant concern around the Clippers that this anything that’s going to linger.”
Woj is right. Alarm bells did go off when Leonard mysteriously left for the locker room on March 12. Even the announcers calling the game were seemingly puzzled by the turn of events, and it wasn’t until after the game that Clippers coach Tyronn Lue explained the reason for Leonard’s departure.
Lue revealed that “The Klaw” had been dealing with back spasms for days and was originally uncertain to play against the Timberwolves. As such, the injury didn’t suddenly appear and was something Clippers management was aware of.
Kawhi Leonard’s Healthiest Season in Years
Woj’s update should come as welcome news to Clippers fans who’ve endured four consecutive seasons filled with injury problems. Leonard has appeared in 58 of the Clippers’ 64 games so far in the 2023-24 campaign, his most active season since joining the Los Angeles-based ball club in 2019.
After playing in 57 of 72 games in the COVID-affected 2019-20 season, Leonard appeared in just 52 of 82 games in the 2020-21 season before sustaining a torn ACL that kept him out of the entire 2021-22 season. Then, during the 2023 playoffs, the Clippers star sustained a torn meniscus during a first-round series against the Suns. All in all, Leonard has missed 164 regular season games since joining his hometown team.
Are the Clippers Legitimate Title Contenders?
Many believe that a healthy Leonard, alongside the likes of Paul George and James Harden, makes the Clippers a legitimate threat to represent the West in the 2024 NBA Finals and go the distance. However, some NBA analysts don’t trust the latter two stars to deliver in the big moments.
Speaking on ESPN’s “NBA Countdown” on March 13, Kendrick Perkins explained why Leonard holds the keys to the Clippers possibly winning their franchise-first NBA Championship in June 2024.
“Without Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers are a first-round exit [in the playoffs] in a tough western conference,” Perkins stressed. “With Kawhi Leonard, they can actually win the championship. That’s how much he means to this team. Do I trust Paul George? No. Do I trust James Harden? No. I trust Kawhi Leonard. I trust Ty Lue.”
The oddsmakers in Las Vegas seem to share Perkins’ views, giving the Clippers the third-lowest likelihood of winning the NBA Championship. The team led by Leonard is currently behind only the Celtics and the reigning champions, the Nuggets, in most sportsbooks. However, these chances could change considerably before the 2024 NBA Playoffs as teams compete for rankings and specific games. The NBA postseason starts on April 20.
