It’ll be some time before fans at Los Angeles’ new Intuit Dome get to see Kawhi Leonard.
The Clippers superstar is reportedly set to miss multiple weeks to start the season as he continues to deal with knee inflammation, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday ahead of the team’s season opener against the Phoenix Suns.
“Kawhi Leonard will be missing weeks,” Charania said on ESPN’s NBA Today broadcast. “This is not an injury that is going to be measured by a week, two weeks potentially, not days obviously. This will be an extended period of time that the Clippers will start this season without him.”
Leonard was planning to be in the Clippers’ opening night lineup as long as his recovery was progressing positively, however, a report last week from Charania indicated that he would be out for an indefinite amount of time as he continued his rehab.
He was limited to two playoff games last season because of inflammation in a knee that has been surgically repaired twice. Leonard’s absence proved costly when the Clippers were eliminated from the playoffs in six games by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round.
The 33-year-old first experienced inflammation in his surgically repaired knee on March 31.
“Right now it’s a positive thing to think I will play, but we’re taking it day by day,” Leonard said last Monday at the team’s media day inside the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood. “I never plan to miss games, but it’s just about my body. I’m a human being and we’re playing basketball.”
Leonard indicated he could be dealing with knee inflammation for the rest of his career, however, was optimistic about his recovery.
“Everything has been going great for the past month, but being very cautious for reasons in the past,” he said. “Haven’t been able to finish some playoff runs so making sure I stay healthy for those important moments.”
The former Toronto Raptor didn’t play for the U.S. at the Paris Olympics, getting replaced on the team in mid-July. USA Basketball concluded that it was in his best interest to focus on preparing for the upcoming NBA season, although the Clippers later said they had no problem with him playing in Paris.
Leonard played 68 games during the regular season, his most as a Clipper, before missing the final eight because of his knee. He signed a three-year extension worth $52 million in January. But his health has restricted his post-season availability for four straight years.
Leonard sat out the entire 2021-22 season with a torn ACL in his right knee. He has missed 179 of a possible 435 games since joining the Clippers in 2019.
— With files from the Associated Press
