In an effort to do right by their star, especially with the postseason looming, the Clippers announced a few hours before Tuesday’s game in Portland that they’re keeping Kawhi Leonard on the sideline for at least the next three games.
Leonard recently has been managing what the team describes as a sore right foot and will be re-evaluated next week, the Clippers said. They’re scheduled to host Memphis on Wednesday and to play in Houston on Friday this week.
“He wants to play, he wants to get out there,” Coach Tyronn Lue said via Zoom before tipoff Tuesday. “But it’s just smart to do it (rest him) right now. With the doctors and sports science guys and the trainers we have, sometimes we got to protect the players from themselves. And right now, we are doing the right thing by Kawhi.
“Everybody says he wants to play and be out there for his teammates,” Lue added. “But right now, it’s not the smartest thing to do with him feeling it and trying to manage it for the most part for a while now. We just got to be smart about it.”
Leonard is averaging a team-leading 25.7 points a career-best 5.1 assists per game, in addition to grabbing 6.7 rebounds and committing a team-high 1.7 steals per contest.
In his last outing Sunday, he played 23 minutes and recorded 15 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in a 124-105 victory over Minnesota.
The 29-year-old All-Star from Moreno Valley has played in 46 of the Clippers’ 59 games this season, his second with the Clippers. Without Leonard, L.A. is 8-5 – including 3-1 in his most recent four-game absence, when he missed one game to rest and then three more because of right foot soreness.
Leonard has also missed games this season because of a mouth laceration, coronavirus health and safety protocols, back spasms and a lower leg contusion.
“He gives us feedback,” Lue said. “And the sports science and medical team, they do a great job of just seeing what’s right for the player, that’s the most important thing. Our most important thing is making sure Kawhi’s healthy going down the stretch. And right now we just feel that we’re just being cautious just to make sure he’s as healthy as early as be can be going into the postseason.”
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