Kawhi Leonard suffered a devastating ACL injury at the end of last season and ever since then, the entire future of the Los Angeles Clippers has been up in the air. When will Leonard return? Will he play like he used to? Sure, he recently signed a four-year, $176 million deal with the Clippers but that doesn't mean he will be racing back soon - especially from an injury like this.
Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank gave an update about Kawhi the other day and it's ambiguous at best.
"Oh, we don't even breach that. I think at this point, it's just no one knows when you're dealing with a recovery from an ACL [injury], the timeframe. Even just to save you guys [from asking] throughout the year, is no one knows. You just attack it day by day, he has a very detailed plan with a great group and we'll just let his body and the doctors tell us when it's the right time."
So that basically sounds like there is a good chance Kawhi Leonard won't be playing for the Clippers much this season - if at all. What does that mean for the team, which is always this close to winning a championship?
Kawhi was giving the Clippers 25.80 points a game. You don't need to be an NBA expert to know that's a lot. It's hard for any one player to put up that many points consistently. With Leonard out for the foreseeable future, the Clippers will have to go elsewhere to make up those points or face a severe deficit. The NBA is a high-scoring league. In fact, some would argue it's more offensive than it's ever been and scoring points is more important than defending in the modern age. If that's true then Los Angeles is going to have to rely on a few other players in their line-up to pick up the slack.
Let's move on to minutes played. When you look at Kawhi's minutes last year, you see that he's one of the most played guys in the league. That's no surprise; he was easily the best performer on his team. He was the 19th most-played athlete in the NBA, standing alongside the likes of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic, and more.
With Kawhi out, the Clippers will have a lot of minutes to fill. He was putting in an average of 34.98 minutes a game, that's a huge chunk of play time. Who will fill that void?
Is there any bright side to Kawhi on the sidelines? Well, yes, maybe. You see, Kawhi is arguably one of the top five players in the NBA. With that sort of excellence comes fame, awards, and huge contracts. But you know what else comes with it? A major target. Kawhi was always public enemy number one for every other team in the league. They knew he was going to be a beast on the floor so he was always defended in significant ways. There was one thing every opposing team could count on: when playing against the Clippers, Kawhi Leonard was going to be an influential factor.
Look at this chart of average free throws made last season. Kawhi was doing about 5 a game, which means he was being fouled more often than most players. That's because he was being defended more than most players because, well, he's far better than most players.
With Kawhi out of the equation, the Clippers have a chance to shake things up and throw their opponents off. Who should the rest of the NBA be worried about? Who will be the playmaker to keep an eye on? Who is the biggest threat? Obviously, Paul George is a star player for the Clippers and will get a lot of attention. However, if the Clippers play their cards right they can keep other teams on their toes. The loss of Kawhi Leonard leads to unpredictability with the Clippers. That could be a good thing for them.
At the end of the day, the Clippers are losing a lot without Kawhi. He was a huge, central part of their roster. But they could use this as an opportunity to find a new identity and retain their greatness. It won't be easy but it will be worth it.
Kawhi Leonard suffered a devastating ACL injury at the end of last season and ever since then, the entire future of the Los Angeles Clippers has been up in the air. When will Leonard return? Will he play like he used to? Sure, he recently signed a four-year, $176 million deal with the Clippers but that doesn't mean he will be racing back soon - especially from an injury like this.
Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank gave an update about Kawhi the other day and it's ambiguous at best.
"Oh, we don't even breach that. I think at this point, it's just no one knows when you're dealing with a recovery from an ACL [injury], the timeframe. Even just to save you guys [from asking] throughout the year, is no one knows. You just attack it day by day, he has a very detailed plan with a great group and we'll just let his body and the doctors tell us when it's the right time."
So that basically sounds like there is a good chance Kawhi Leonard won't be playing for the Clippers much this season - if at all. What does that mean for the team, which is always this close to winning a championship?
Kawhi was giving the Clippers 25.80 points a game. You don't need to be an NBA expert to know that's a lot. It's hard for any one player to put up that many points consistently. With Leonard out for the foreseeable future, the Clippers will have to go elsewhere to make up those points or face a severe deficit. The NBA is a high-scoring league. In fact, some would argue it's more offensive than it's ever been and scoring points is more important than defending in the modern age. If that's true then Los Angeles is going to have to rely on a few other players in their line-up to pick up the slack.
Let's move on to minutes played. When you look at Kawhi's minutes last year, you see that he's one of the most played guys in the league. That's no surprise; he was easily the best performer on his team. He was the 19th most-played athlete in the NBA, standing alongside the likes of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic, and more.
With Kawhi out, the Clippers will have a lot of minutes to fill. He was putting in an average of 34.98 minutes a game, that's a huge chunk of play time. Who will fill that void?
Is there any bright side to Kawhi on the sidelines? Well, yes, maybe. You see, Kawhi is arguably one of the top five players in the NBA. With that sort of excellence comes fame, awards, and huge contracts. But you know what else comes with it? A major target. Kawhi was always public enemy number one for every other team in the league. They knew he was going to be a beast on the floor so he was always defended in significant ways. There was one thing every opposing team could count on: when playing against the Clippers, Kawhi Leonard was going to be an influential factor.
Look at this chart of average free throws made last season. Kawhi was doing about 5 a game, which means he was being fouled more often than most players. That's because he was being defended more than most players because, well, he's far better than most players.
With Kawhi out of the equation, the Clippers have a chance to shake things up and throw their opponents off. Who should the rest of the NBA be worried about? Who will be the playmaker to keep an eye on? Who is the biggest threat? Obviously, Paul George is a star player for the Clippers and will get a lot of attention. However, if the Clippers play their cards right they can keep other teams on their toes. The loss of Kawhi Leonard leads to unpredictability with the Clippers. That could be a good thing for them.
At the end of the day, the Clippers are losing a lot without Kawhi. He was a huge, central part of their roster. But they could use this as an opportunity to find a new identity and retain their greatness. It won't be easy but it will be worth it.
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