On Tuesday night, the Los Angeles Clippers lost 108-94 to the Oklahoma City Thunder and Kawhi Leonard did not play due to discomfort in his surgically repaired right knee.
There will be a rematch between the two teams on Thursday in Oklahoma City and Leonard will once again be sidelined.
Coach Ty Lue assured reporters before Tuesday’s loss that Leonard’s right ACL is doing well and that the Clippers are taking no chances with their franchise star.
To get his knee checked out, Leonard will return to Los Angeles on Wednesday. The Clippers won’t know Leonard’s status for Sunday’s game against New Orleans until they find out how he feels.
After shootaround, he felt some soreness in his knee, Lue said before the Clippers faced the Thunder. Even though he wants to play, we want to be careful and make sure we’re helping him out in the best way possible. We just didn’t think it was a good idea. That doesn’t mean he can’t be angry at us, but it’s not a good idea right now.
Leonard was sorely missed. The Thunder cruised to their first victory of the season behind 33 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and 25 points from Tre Mann. Paul George (an illness unrelated to the COVID-19 virus) and Marcus Morris Sr. were two more players the Clippers missed (personal reasons).
Before Tuesday, Leonard had played in two of the Clippers’ first three games, averaging 21 minutes per contest. He tore his right ACL in Game 4 of the second round against Utah on June 14, 2021. In order to play the entirety of each game, he came off the bench three times. Leonard didn’t play in the first game of the Clippers’ back-to-back last weekend because he was resting.
The two-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player for the Clippers acknowledged that his return to form would be gradual and that he probably would not return to the starting lineup until his minutes hit 34 to 35 per game.
Yet, Leonard felt fine until Tuesday morning’s shootaround, when he noticed his knee was stiff. According to Lue, Leonard has no upcoming medical appointments in the Los Angeles area.
Sending him back to Los Angeles, where he will have easier access to treatment, was among Lue’s recommendations. And then we shall observe the results.
You have to expect some pain after ACL surgery; it’s inevitable. Minor stiffness is common, so we must take precautions.
Nicolas Batum a seasoned veteran has no worries about Leonard’s absence or the Clippers’ need for additional time to reach full strength.
It will take at least two months to truly get everything in the same groove, get set,” Batum said after Tuesday’s setback. That’s the usual. We have had fewer than three weeks of training camp. Those four games were all preseason warmups. We’ll be OK once we get everyone back, and we’ll be prepared for whatever comes next.
Fans, Batum said, may “relax” now.
Batum acknowledged the difficulty of the situation: “We know it’s not easy, not cool to witness a game like [Tuesday],” he remarked. We’ll figure things out and be fine if we just keep working, stay together, watch videos, practice and play games. Our team is competent, and our coach is just what we need. We’ll be alright, they’re all A+ players.
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