LA Clippers star Kawhi Leonard underwent a procedure on his knee in May, according to league sources. The franchise said Tuesday that Leonard will be limited to strengthening his knee to start Clippers training camp, but team officials are optimistic about his progress.
Leonard will also be held out of drills when the team begins training camp next week, according to president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, as the 2024 All-Star and All-NBA second-team selection continues to manage swelling in his surgically repaired right knee.
“His right knee, the swelling has significantly gone down,” Frank said Tuesday. “It’s almost gone. He wants to participate in everything in training camp. But we’re going to hold him back from drill work and really focus on strengthening, because the goal is to get him 100 percent so he can have a great season. Not just this year, but for many years. We’ll have a detailed plan step by step kind of measure, just having objective measures to go from one phase to the next. But he’s super determined, super excited and can’t wait to get started.”
Leonard, who turned 33 years old this summer, signed a three-year contract extension in January that kicks in this season. But he has had a tumultuous 2024 as it relates to a knee that he tore the ACL of during the 2021 postseason and the meniscus in the 2023 playoffs.
Clippers star Kawhi Leonard underwent a procedure on his knee in the offseason, sources tell me and @LawMurrayTheNU. The franchise said today Leonard will be limited to strengthening his knee to start Clippers training camp, but team officials are optimistic about his progress. pic.twitter.com/VtCvlBEhPf
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 25, 2024
While 2023-24 was an award-winning season for Leonard that saw him play more games (68) than he had since his last healthy San Antonio Spurs season in 2017 and set a career high in minutes per game (34.3), he was unable to play the last eight games of the regular season due to what the team called right knee inflammation. The Clippers expressed optimism that his knee would allow him to play at some point in the postseason. But Leonard did not play in Game 1 against the Dallas Mavericks, and after a limited performance in Games 2 and 3, Leonard was unable to finish the postseason for the fourth straight year.
Leonard’s knee was operated on again in May after the Clippers were eliminated, shortly after he was selected to be on the United States men’s Olympic team. When the U.S. team arrived in July for training camp before traveling for the Olympics, Leonard had a sleeve on his right leg. Though Leonard was able to participate in practice, he was withdrawn from the team and replaced by Boston Celtics guard Derrick White.
Frank said Tuesday that the team was encouraged by Leonard’s progress and that Leonard wants to participate in everything at camp, but the team is focused on having Leonard be 100 percent ahead of the season. When asked if Leonard would be ready for the regular season opener against the Phoenix Suns in the new Intuit Dome, Frank hedged.
“I think that the timing is all going to basically depend on how his knee responds to each phase,” Frank said. “No one has a crystal ball. We’re trending in a really, really good direction. I know he’s super determined to have a great year. But the timing, I think when it comes to your body and your health, I don’t think you put time frames on it. I think you just have to respond to how he responds.”
Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue is tasked with managing a roster that no longer has Paul George on it, in addition to Leonard’s murky status entering the fall. Lue said the Clippers just have to go “step by step” in regards to preparing for the season while Leonard continues to strengthen his knee.
“Just make sure he’s checking all the boxes and, you know, the medical staff is going to tell us when he’s, you know, ready to do everything and what he can do. So our focus is just, you know, the guys practicing. We’ve got to make sure we’re doing it hard, we’re doing it the right way, and no shortcuts. And so it’s got to be our mentality, that every night we’ve got to come out and play hard. Compete at a high level with no shortcuts. So that’s got to be our main focus.”
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