Kawhi Leonard’s Status In Question For Game 1 Vs. Mavs
Clippers star forward Kawhi Leonard is still batting inflammation in his right knee and he’ll be listed as questionable for Los Angeles’s first game in the playoffs against the Mavericks on Sunday, according to ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk. Previously, coach Tyronn Lue had said he was preparing as if Leonard would be ready to play.
President of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said Leonard hadn’t gone through contact prior to Thursday’s practice but that his knee is “solid and intact” despite “very stubborn” inflammation.
“He’s doing everything,” Frank said of Leonard. “Our medical staff is doing everything to get the inflammation down so he can play. Progress has been made, but more progress needs — the inflammation needs to continue to reduce so he can do functional basketball movements.”
Leonard hasn’t appeared in a game since March 31 while dealing with the injury after averaging 23.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest this season. According to Shams Charania and Mark Puleo of The Athletic, the star forward received an injection in the affected knee in early April. It’s not specified whether or not that was a PRP (platelet-rich plasma) injection.
“There is no gamesmanship here and we’re very sensitive of the fact that questions are going to be asked and want to be as transparent as possible,” Frank said. “It’s OK to say what the truth is. It’s unpredictable. We’re hoping it’s trending in the right direction. It’s a very accurate statement. When it gets to a point where he’s able to play, then that’s when he’ll be back on the court.”
According to Frank, Leonard has gone through film study to personnel but hasn’t gone through many contact portions leading up to Thursday. Frank also didn’t go into specifics when asked about the reported injection.
“We would never put Kawhi or anyone on the court if there’s grave risk or there’s risk for future injury,” Frank said. “We’re hopeful that this inflammation will get reduced and he’ll be back on the court as quickly as possible. But you can’t predict something that’s unpredictable.“
Clippers Notes: Leonard, Harden, Playoffs, Brown
Kawhi Leonard‘s status remains uncertain, but coach Tyronn Lue is preparing for him to be ready when the Clippers open their first-round series with Dallas on Sunday, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Leonard, who missed the last eight games of the regular season due to inflammation in his right knee, hasn’t played since March 31.
Before today’s practice, Lue told reporters that the medical staff would determine how much Leonard would be permitted to do during the session. Team doctors were also monitoring Leonard to see how his knee responded after taking part in a quarter of Tuesday’s practice.
Lue added that Leonard is making progress, but there’s still not a set timetable for his return.
“Letting medical take over, and whatever is the best thing for Kawhi, making sure you protect him first,” Lue said. “But whatever is best for him is what we’re going to do. Not sure of the minutes yet, or how long he’ll be able to play. So we just kind of wait and take it day by day.”
There’s more on the Clippers:
- James Harden is confident that he’ll be ready for the playoff opener after missing three of the team’s last four games with inflammation in his right foot, Youngmisuk adds. Harden is hoping to change his playoff reputation in L.A. after a recent history of sub-par performances. “I mean I always want to play well in the playoffs,” Harden said. “I’ve had some not great games, but I have some really good games. So for me, I think the goal is to win, and that’s the only thing that I’m missing at the highest level as far as my NBA career. Of course, I want to play well individually and then I want our team to play well. So I think it’s my job as one of the leaders on this team is to make sure our guys are fulfilling their potential and maximizing what they bring to our team to the best of their ability, game by game.”
- Harden expects everyone to be more focused now that the playoffs have arrived and wasn’t bothered that Lue called the team “soft” a few weeks ago (video link from Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints). “We’re still a fairly new group,” he said. “… For me, I think it’s just not getting bored with the game, find ways to keep getting better, even when you feel like it’s a tough game or opponent might not be as good, you might not feel the best. … Now we’re locked in on one opponent.”
- Kobe Brown is looking forward to his first NBA postseason, per Janis Carr of The Orange County Register, who talked to Brown after last Friday’s game when the Clippers returned to the locker room to find thick scouting reports on the Mavericks on their chairs. “I’m really excited to see what it’s like,” Brown said. “We already got the playoff scouting report or whatever it is. Big packet that I’ve never had before. It’s going to be fun, exciting … I want to see how far we go. Hopefully, we can win it all. It will be fun.”
Kawhi Leonard Completes Team USA’s Star-Studded Roster For Olympics
Team USA has completed its selection of an All-Star laden 12-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics, Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic report (Twitter link). Kawhi Leonard was chosen for the final roster spot, USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt tweets.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Monday the 11 other selections for the roster. Team USA received a firm commitment from Leonard on Tuesday, Wojnarowski tweets.
Unlike USA Basketball’s FIBA World Cup roster last summer, which lacked size and interior strength, the Olympic roster is filled with quality bigs. Joel Embiid, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Davis will be joined at the power positions by LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
The wings will be manned by Jayson Tatum, Leonard, Devin Booker and Anthony Edwards. Jrue Holiday, Tyrese Haliburton and Stephen Curry round out the backcourt.
Haliburton and Edwards are the only players from the FIBA World Cup roster to make Team USA’s Olympic roster.
Team USA has won the gold medal in each of the last four Summer Olympics.
And-Ones: Kawhi, Team USA, FAs, Musa, Coaches, More
With 11 of 12 roster spots reportedly locked in for USA Basketball’s 2024 Olympic roster, the program could go in a number of different directions with the 12th and final slot. The list of players in contention for that final roster spot includes plenty of big names, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports that Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard is currently viewed as the leading candidate.
Leonard’s teammate Paul George, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Magic forward Paolo Banchero, and Nets forward Mikal Bridges are also in the mix, sources tell Charania.
Leonard hasn’t represented Team USA at the Olympics or a World Cup before, but has support from some of the stars on the roster, including Kevin Durant and LeBron James, says Charania. George won gold with Team USA in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, while Brunson, Banchero, and Bridges competed in the 2023 World Cup.
It’s possible that more than one player in that final group of candidates could ultimately make the cut if any of the top 11 have to drop out due to an injury or for personal reasons. Of course, Leonard is currently dealing with a nagging knee issue of his own, though there’s no indication at this point it would prevent him from playing in July.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Danny Leroux of The Athletic takes a look at the NBA’s 2024 free agent class, evaluating what sort of stars, starters, and rotation players will be available. As Leroux observes, a handful of stars are on track for potential free agency, but few – if any – are good bets to change teams. That group includes LeBron James, Paul George, James Harden, Pascal Siakam, and Tyrese Maxey.
- In an interview with Dean Sinovcic of Nacional.hr, former first-round pick Dzanan Musa, who spent two seasons in Brooklyn from 2018-20, didn’t rule out the possibility of returning to the NBA as early as this offseason, but said he’s focused for now on trying to win Liga ACB and EuroLeague titles with Real Madrid (hat tip to Sportando).
- Sam Amick of The Athletic considers what’s at stake for each NBA head coach in the postseason, suggesting that the pressure will be on Joe Mazzulla (Celtics) to at least reach the NBA Finals. Jason Kidd (Mavericks), J.B. Bickerstaff (Cavaliers), and Darvin Ham (Lakers) are among the others who will be motivated to avoid early exits, Amick adds.
- In a conversation about end-of-season awards, a panel of five ESPN experts weren’t in agreement on who should win Most Improved Player or Sixth Man of the Year. Three different players – Malik Monk, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Naz Reid – earned votes from the five-man panel for Sixth Man honors.
- Which NBA players were the most underpaid this season? Despite being on a maximum-salary contract, Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tops the list from Frank Urbina of HoopsHype.
Pacific Notes: Davis, Lee, Allen, Kawhi, Kings, Warriors
Anthony Davis missed the final six minutes of Sunday’s victory over New Orleans due to back spasms, but he’s confident he’ll be ready to go on Tuesday when the Lakers and Pelicans meet again in the play-in tournament, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
“No doubt that I’m going to play,” Davis said after Sunday’s game.
Davis’ injury occurred with 5:52 remaining in the fourth quarter when he was attempting to grab a rebound and was pushed in the back by Pelicans big man Larry Nance Jr. (video link). According to McMenamin, Davis said the contract resulted in hyperextension when he landed and that his back “just locked up.”
“I was in the air,” Davis said. “Obviously it’s a dangerous play. I know he’s not a dirty player.”
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- Suns wing Damion Lee admits that he went through some “dark days” during the lengthy recovery process from an October meniscus surgery that sidelined him for the entire regular season, as Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic relays. However, Lee is in a better place now as he nears the end of that recovery process — he also hasn’t given up on the idea of returning this spring. “To be determined,” Lee said. “I’ll just leave it at this. I feel like the longer we go in the postseason, the more likely there is a chance. No timetable necessarily. It’s all feel based. You saw me out here shooting, jumping. Running.”
- Grayson Allen gave up a little money to sign an extension with the Suns, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link), who says the veteran swingman could have secured $80-85MM on the open market. Allen has reportedly agreed to a four-year, $70MM deal with Phoenix.
- The Clippers continue to be evasive about Kawhi Leonard‘s outlook for the start of the playoffs, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. Asked on Sunday whether Leonard has been doing workouts, head coach Tyronn Lue said he’s “been doing a little something,” but Lue declined to say whether or not he expects the star forward to be available in the postseason.
- It won’t be an easy path to the playoffs for the Kings or Warriors, who will each have to win two play-in games just to claim the No. 8 seed in the West. Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee takes a look at the challenge facing the Kings, while Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic checks in on a Golden State team in “March Madness mode.”
Clippers Notes: Westbrook, Leonard, Harden, Hyland
The Clippers have gone 7-2 in games in which Russell Westbrook has shouldered a full workload since returning from hand surgery on March 25, helping Los Angeles regain some of the form that earned the team the top spot in the West earlier this season, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk writes. Westbrook became the Clippers’ sixth man after they traded for James Harden, which helped propel the team to its best regular season in the Kawhi Leonard/Paul George era.
“I know who I am and what I’m able to bring to the game,” Westbrook said. “Nobody’s able to do what I can do since I got in this league. And the reason why I’m in the position I’m in is because nobody ever knew I could do [it on a] night-in and night-out basis.”
Westbrook, who has made 116 career playoff starts, will come off the bench for the first time in the postseason in the Clips’ first-round series against the Mavericks. When it comes to establishing identity and making four high-profile stars work together, George and coach Tyronn Lue pointed to Westbrook’s contributions, according to Youngmisuk.
“We owed it to him to make it work,” George said. “All of us collectively, we know what sacrifice looks like now.”
It was Westbrook who came to Lue with the idea of coming off the bench when the Clippers lost six straight after acquiring Harden. Although he’s averaging a career-low of 11.2 points per game, he’s playing better defense and said he’s in a better place mentally, according to Youngmisuk, who says Westbrook is happy in Los Angeles and is ready for whatever the future brings, whether that’s with the Clippers or not.
“If I’m here, if I’m there, I’ll do whatever the team is asking me to do,” Westbrook said. “I think there’s a narrative that people have made up that I have been fighting against …. But I’m always a team-first guy. I know how good I still am. So it doesn’t matter — starting or coming off the bench — because I know and understand what I bring to the game.”
We have more from the Clippers:
- Leonard has missed the past seven games with left knee soreness and inflammation. The Orange County Register’s Mirjam Swanson argues the team is being too vague when it comes to disclosing timelines for his injuries. “With Kawhi, he’s dealing with inflammation. It’s no secret he’s had a couple surgeries to that knee. It’s not uncommon over the course of it where you deal with inflammation. With inflammation, it limits your ability to make some natural basketball moves, so he’s working his tail off, the staff is working their tail off to try to help with the inflammation,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said Friday of Leonard (Twitter link via Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints).
- Harden missed the past two games with a foot issue, but he started on Friday against the Jazz, though he only played nine minutes. According to Youngmisuk (Twitter link), Lue isn’t sure whether Harden’s foot injury is something that will need to be managed in the playoffs.
- Bones Hyland saw his role reduced after Harden was acquired this year and he was briefly sent home alongside P.J. Tucker in February as both appeared disgruntled with their playing time, Janis Carr of The Orange County Register writes. Hyland has taken on a bigger role since the beginning of March and has scored 57 points over his past two games. He’s is staying ready for when the team needs him, according to Carr, and is hoping to be a part of the playoff rotation. “He’s done a great job of just sticking with it, continuing to keep working, putting the work in every single day,” Lue said. “And when his name has been called, he’s been good for us. He loves to compete, he loves to play, but right now with the circumstances the way they are, he’s done a good job of just handling the whole situation.“
Pacific Notes: O’Neale, Allen, Hyland, Leonard, Monk, Sabonis
Suns coach Frank Vogel switched up his rotation in the team’s 124-108 win over the Clippers on Wednesday, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports. Royce O’Neale was inserted into the lineup in place of Grayson Allen, while Thaddeus Young replaced Drew Eubanks as the backup center.
However, the Suns could go right back to Allen as the starter against Sacramento on Friday. “It’s just something we’ve been talking about,” Vogel said. “If we get into a playoff matchup where we have a bigger opponent, then we feel like (O’Neale’s) size in the starting lineup is something that would make sense. We didn’t want to go to that with Grayson coming off the bench for the first time having never done it. We used this one game to let Grayson just feel the rhythm of coming off the bench, if it’s needed in the playoffs.”
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Ivica Zubac and Norman Powell sat out the second game of a back-to-back on Wednesday. Bones Hyland carried the Clippers‘ offense in their absence, pumping in a career-high 37 points, Janis Carr of the Orange County Register notes. Leonard sat out his sixth consecutive game because of inflammation in his right knee. He might not return until the postseason but coach Tyronn Lue believes his superstar forward will be ready to go by that point.
- Kings guard Malik Monk was the solid frontrunner for the Sixth Man of the Year award until he suffered a sprained MCL in his right knee late last month. Center Domantas Sabonis said Monk still deserves the honor. “Monk has to win it,” Sabonis told HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto. “If he doesn’t win it, it’s rigged. He definitely brings energy and light. If we’re down, he’s always up and in a good mood off the court, too, so that really helps during a long season with ups and downs.” Coach Mike Brown concurs. “It should not even be a debate on Sixth Man of the Year with Malik’s body of work and us fighting for a playoff spot,” Brown said. “He should be the hands-down winner.”
- Monk will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Sacramento has Early Bird rights on Monk and can sign him up to $78MM over four years. “I’d love to play here again, for sure. I’ve been here for two years and made friends with everyone, including the training staff and front office,” Monk told Scotto. Sabonis said the organization can’t afford to lose him: “We’ve got to keep him. He’s a big piece for us moving forward.”
- Sabonis saw his 61-game double-double streak end on Tuesday, Cliff Brunt of The Associated Press writes. He had eight points and 13 rebounds against Oklahoma City. It’s the seventh-longest streak in league history and the longest since the NBA and ABA merged prior to the 1976/77 season.
Pacific Notes: Thomas, Thompson, Kawhi, Harden, Jones
Having earned a rest-of-season commitment from the Suns, Isaiah Thomas isn’t looking to just play out this season and then call it a career. He views his comeback this spring as a “stepping stone” toward continuing his playing career beyond 2023/24, he told reporters on Tuesday (Twitter video link via Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic).
“I want to play two to three more years,” Thomas said. “Knowing that I can still play a high level, knowing that I can still impact a locker room. That’s a positive, being able to be signed for the rest of the year and to hopefully build some momentum going into next year for myself, and into free agency.”
Thomas added that he appreciates the Suns welcoming him “with open arms” and that he likes it “a lot” in Phoenix, signaling that he’d be open to remaining with the team beyond this season if that interest is reciprocated.
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- Asked by teammate Draymond Green on his podcast about what factors will be most important to him during his upcoming free agency, Warriors wing Klay Thompson admitted that his contract situation weighed on him earlier this season and that it took some time for him to stop stressing about it and focus on having fun. “I want to re-sign with the Dubs, but I also have to prioritize my mental health and lay out what is important to me at this point in my career,” Thompson said (Twitter video link).
- Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard will miss a fifth consecutive game due to right knee inflammation on Tuesday vs. Phoenix, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Los Angeles is a single win away from clinching a top-six seed and a playoff berth, but will obviously need Leonard healthy to make a deep postseason run.
- James Harden‘s status for Tuesday’s game is up in the air, as he has been added to the Clippers‘ injury report with right foot inflammation, notes Youngmisuk (Twitter link).
- Could Colby Jones join the likes of Keon Ellis and Davion Mitchell and become the latest Kings youngster to go from out of the rotation to playing a key role? Chris Biderman of The Sacramento Bee explores that question after Jones played the final six minutes of Friday’s loss to Boston and then logged a career-high 23 minutes in Sunday’s blowout win over Brooklyn. Jones was a +34 in 29 total minutes across those two appearances.
Pacific Notes: Lakers, Allen, Myers, Curry, Leonard
It won’t be easy for the Lakers to reach the top six in the West, but they haven’t been looking like a play-in team, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. L.A. blew out Cleveland this afternoon to move into eighth place, which is the team’s highest spot since late December. With nine wins in their last 10 games, Anthony Davis believes the Lakers are ready for whatever challenges they face in the postseason.
“We’re very confident in our ballclub,” he said after posting 22 points, 13 rebounds, six blocks and three steals. “We laugh about, like, ‘Oh, winning nine out of 10,’ and we haven’t went anywhere [in the standings]. So, it’s how good the West is. But we’re confident, very confident in our ballclub and any time we step on the floor.”
At 45-33, L.A. is a half-game behind New Orleans and a half-game ahead of Sacramento in a tight race for seedings. The Lakers trail Phoenix by a game-and-a-half for the coveted sixth spot, but they’re two games back in the loss column and will need some help to catch the Suns.
“I think the biggest difference is just that we’re just having fun,” Davis added. “We’re holding each other accountable. If somebody messes up we’re yelling, screaming at him. But nobody is taking it personal. Because we all know what we’re here for, to try to win. So we’re having fun, we’re having a great time out there playing basketball, and we’re staying together.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Suns coach Frank Vogel indicated that he might consider replacing Grayson Allen with Royce O’Neale in the starting lineup depending on the postseason matchup, tweets Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “Grayson has been our starter, I expect it to stay that way,” Vogel said, “but you get into or near the playoffs, everything is on the table.”
- Appearing on JJ Redick’s podcast, former Warriors general manager Bob Myers said the team was never able to determine who provided the media with video of Draymond Green punching Jordan Poole at practice (video link from ClutchPoints). Myers said the organization conducted an investigation and even brought in a third party in an effort to find the culprit.
- The Warriors will rest Stephen Curry for Sunday’s game with Utah, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga are both listed as questionable.
- Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard will miss his fourth straight game Sunday against Cleveland for treatment and recovery on his right knee, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
L.A. Notes: Kawhi, Harden, Vanderbilt, LeBron
Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard missed a third straight game on Friday due to right knee inflammation, with head coach Tyronn Lue telling reporters that the star forward is considered day to day, per Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
Appearing on SportsCenter on Friday (Twitter video link), Youngmisuk said the injury is one the Clippers and Leonard have to manage carefully with the postseason around the corner, noting that the affected knee is the same one he underwent surgery on in both 2021 and 2023.
The expectation, according to Youngmisuk, is that Leonard shouldn’t require an extended absence, but since the Clippers are currently in a stretch of five games in seven days, the team may not be in a hurry to bring him back until the schedule lightens up a bit.
Here’s more on the NBA’s two Los Angeles teams:
- The Clippers are hoping to get James Harden‘s offensive game back on track, as Youngmisuk said on SportsCenter and Janis Carr outlined for The Orange County Register. Friday’s 15-assist triple-double in a blowout win over Utah was a step in the right direction, but Harden was limited to just 13 points in that victory and made fewer than half of his field goal attempts for a ninth straight game. He’s averaging 12.2 PPG on 33.0% shooting during those nine games.
- Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt (right midfoot sprain) will be reevaluated early next week in Los Angeles, head coach Darvin Ham said on Wednesday, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). McMenamin provided an update of his own on Friday, tweeting that Vanderbilt has yet to be cleared for contact drills but went through an individual workout on Friday. The 25-year-old, who last played on February 1, is still working his way toward full sprinting and jumping, McMenamin adds.
- Although LeBron James told reporters last weekend that he has “not very long” left in his NBA career, Shams Charania of The Athletic said on ESPN’s Pat McAfee Show (Twitter video link) that people around James and around the NBA expect the Lakers‘ superstar forward to play for at least “one or two more years” beyond this one. Next season would be James’ 22nd, which would tie him with Vince Carter for the most in NBA history.
- A year ago, the Lakers began the season with a 25-31 record before finishing on an 18-8 run. They’ve made a similar second-half push this season, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic, having gone 20-8 since starting 24-25. Due to the competitive nature of the Western Conference, Los Angeles is still in ninth place, so not even a playoff berth is assured, let alone a return to the Western Finals. “We just hope we can go through the same journey in terms of securing a playoff spot and having success — and go even deeper this time,” Ham said.