Clippers Limit Kawhi Leonard's Participation After Knee Procedure
Los Angeles Clippers president Lawrence Frank announced on Tuesday that star forward Kawhi Leonard will be restricted from certain activities during training camp due to an ongoing issue with his right knee.
Sources informed The Athletic's Shams Charania and Law Murray that Leonard underwent a procedure on his knee during the offseason.
"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% so that he can have a great season," Frank stated, according to Murray. "Not just this year but many years."
Although the swelling in Leonard's knee has decreased, Frank noted that there is no guarantee the two-time Finals MVP will be ready for the season opener in a month's time.
"The timing is gonna depend how his knee responds to each phase," Frank mentioned, as reported by Joey Linn of Sports Illustrated.
Frank further added, "We're trending in a good direction ... but the timing when it comes to your body and your health, you don't put time frames on it."
Last postseason, Leonard appeared in only two of the Clippers' six first-round playoff games against the Dallas Mavericks due to right knee inflammation. He previously tore his ACL in that same knee during the 2021 playoffs, which sidelined him for the entire 2021-22 season. He also suffered a meniscus tear in the knee during the 2023 playoffs, causing him to miss the last three games of the team's first-round exit to the Phoenix Suns.
In July, USA Basketball expressed concerns about Leonard's knee to the Clippers and subsequently withdrew the 33-year-old from Team USA's Olympic camp.
In the 2023-24 season, Leonard played 68 games, marking the most he has participated in a regular season since 2016-17 when he appeared in a career-high 74 games for the San Antonio Spurs.
The Clippers are set to begin their season on October 23 against the Suns at their new venue, the Intuit Dome.
