Kawhi Leonard to overlook begin of Clippers’ season, out indefinitely with knee irritation: Supply

LA Clippers star Kawhi Leonard will miss the start of the 2024-25 NBA season as he continues to rehab his surgically repaired proper knee, a group supply mentioned Thursday.

Leonard has not suffered a setback in his restoration, the group supply mentioned. However he has not been cleared to observe and the circumstances that induced the group to not decide to a timetable for Leonard’s eventual return stay in place, even with the group’s regular-season opener towards the Phoenix Suns on the new Intuit Dome approaching on Oct. 23.

ESPN reported Thursday that Leonard is anticipated to be sidelined indefinitely to start out the season.

On Monday, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue didn’t embrace Leonard in his group’s opening-night lineup. The quintet of James Harden, Norman Powell, Terance Mann, Derrick Jones Jr. and Ivica Zubac will begin Wednesday when LA hosts the Suns. (Powell is anticipated to stay a starter when Leonard returns.)

Leonard underwent a process in Might to handle his knee irritation and was cleared by late June to work out in entrance of USA Basketball officers.

The Clippers have maintained that Leonard is out indefinitely, and that is still the case. He was medically cleared to play for Staff USA on the Paris Olympics, with much less on-court duty than he has with LA. Leonard arrived at coaching camp with a sleeve on his proper leg and was in a position to take part within the preliminary practices for Staff USA.

However he was changed on the roster shortly earlier than the match started. (Joel Embiid, one other Staff USA participant recovering from a knee damage, did play within the Olympics, however has not participated in preseason and can doubtless sit out some regular-season video games for damage upkeep).

When requested if Leonard would play on opening day, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank wouldn’t decide to a timetable; Leonard was out indefinitely.

“I believe that the timing is all going to principally depend upon how his knee responds to every section,” Frank mentioned on Sept. 24, every week earlier than coaching camp. “Nobody has a crystal ball. We’re trending in a very, actually good route. I do know he’s tremendous decided to have an awesome 12 months.

“However the timing, I believe relating to your physique and your well being, I don’t assume you place timeframes on it. You simply have to reply to how he responds.”

Whereas Leonard’s purpose was to be prepared for the group’s first regular-season sport, he acknowledged on media day that “we’re taking it day-to-day.”

“The largest factor for us is ensuring we do proper by Kawhi,” Lue mentioned every week in the past earlier than the Clippers preseason sport towards the Brooklyn Nets. “Not let him harm himself making an attempt to get again early. We will’t skip steps, we bought to comply with the method. Our medical employees is without doubt one of the finest within the league.

“We bought to guarantee that we’re checking each field, we’re doing all the pieces the best manner, earlier than we get him on the ground. So if that’s him being pissed off at us as a result of we protected him, then so be it.”

GO DEEPER

Kawhi Leonard continues to be figuring these Clippers out, similar to all of us

Because the begin of coaching camp, Leonard has targeted on strengthening his surgically repaired proper knee whereas remaining out of group drills. He additionally mentioned his focus is to be wholesome on the finish of the season and into the playoffs. Leonard has not completed a season wholesome since his preliminary 2019-20 marketing campaign with the Clippers.

“As I become old, guys aren’t doing what I’m doing, just about,” Leonard mentioned throughout halftime of the Clippers’ first preseason sport. “That is what I work for. I attempt to get a championship. I’m not on the market to attempt to play 82 video games. I’m making an attempt to win. Regardless that that’s obligated from me, I’ve tried to. And it hasn’t labored out. So we’ll see.”

Leonard has a historical past of false begins since tearing his proper ACL within the second spherical of the 2021 playoffs. After lacking all the 2021-22 season, he absolutely participated within the ensuing coaching camp, performed in a number of preseason video games and urged the teaching employees to make use of him off the bench to open the 2022-23 common season.

Inside two weeks, Leonard skilled a setback in his knee and missed 25 days of motion earlier than returning. He was largely in a position to keep on the ground thereafter till tearing his proper meniscus in the course of the group’s first-round collection towards the Phoenix Suns.

Final season, Leonard performed 68 of the primary 74 video games, however missed the final eight regular-season video games and the group’s first playoff sport attributable to proper knee irritation. He returned for Video games 2 and three earlier than struggling a setback and sitting out the ultimate three video games of the Clippers’ first-round collection loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Clippers gamers proceed to say they aren’t involved about an prolonged absence for Leonard and count on him to be prepared sooner or later. The group has spent coaching camp and preseason getting ready to play with out their star.

“He simply must take his time, you already know,” James Harden mentioned not too long ago. “I believe we want Kawhi later within the 12 months and wholesome.”

The Clippers nonetheless count on Leonard to be accessible for an affordable variety of video games as soon as he can observe and ramp up his exercise.

However Leonard’s absence to start the common season is one other signal the group is dedicated to creating positive he stays on the ground for good as soon as he returns as a substitute of coming again to open a brand new constructing, solely to undergo one other setback.

“It’s all the time a build-up to taking part in in a sport,” Leonard mentioned in Honolulu. “Particularly within the place that I’m in.”

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(Photograph: Jacob Kupferman / Getty Pictures)