Kawhi Leonard is outwardly near being able to make his season debut with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Leonard practiced with the group for the primary time this season on Tuesday, head coach Ty Lue confirmed. Leonard was out all fall with irritation in his proper knee, which additionally triggered him to overlook final summer season’s Paris Olympics with Crew USA.
Leonard’s participation in Tuesday’s follow was subdued — Lue mentioned he simply “did an offensive script, a defensive script and a few non-contact work” — however he regarded “good.” If all goes nicely, in accordance with ESPN’s Dave McMenaminLeonard might play within the subsequent two weeks.
“Actually good signal, simply to see him transferring, transferring nicely,” Lue mentioned. “I feel the most important factor for him is simply confidence in himself. Simply having the boldness to maintain doing it, to not really feel the ache and hold pushing by it.
“So it was good to see him on the sphere and it gave us just a little juice immediately only for our guys to see him on the sphere, it actually received our power again.”
Leonard, who initially mentioned he deliberate to play within the group’s season opener in September, underwent knee surgical procedure in the course of the offseason. He’s been absent indefinitely since. Leonard’s knee issues have affected him because the finish of final season, when he missed the ultimate eight video games of the common season and all however two video games of the first-round playoff sequence that the Clippers misplaced to the Dallas Mavericks.
Leonard averaged 23.7 factors, 6.1 rebounds and three.6 assists per sport final season. He appeared in 68 video games, probably the most he has performed in a single season since becoming a member of the Clippers in 2019. Leonard, who missed the whole 2021-22 marketing campaign whereas recovering from a torn ACL, missed 204 of a doable 460 video games with the Clippers.
It’s nonetheless unclear when Leonard will make his season debut. The Clippers didn’t present a timetable for his return and Lue mentioned they might not rush something.
“He must do much more issues to essentially get again on the sphere,” Lue mentioned. “We simply need to make certain he is one hundred pc. We do not need to take him out, 70 %, 75 %. Like, let’s take our time, make certain we do it proper. … We’re not “We’re not going to let him skip steps, and so we need to do the precise factor by Kawhi.”
The Clippers are 14-11 with out Leonard this season. They’ve misplaced 4 of their final seven video games heading into Friday’s sport towards the Denver Nuggets. They presently sit in sixth place within the Western Convention.
Though Leonard’s well being has been a difficulty for many of his profession, a wholesome Leonard would go a good distance for the Clippers within the playoffs. They’ve been eradicated within the first spherical of the playoffs in every of the final two seasons and have solely reached the convention finals as soon as in group historical past.
Earlier than any of this occurs, Leonard must get again on the sphere. And for the primary time in months, it feels prefer it’s imminent.
