The Los Angeles Clippers have more help coming as star forward Kawhi Leonard returns to practice after dealing with ongoing knee issues.
Leonard missed a dozen games last season due to right knee inflammation, which prolonged his absence from the court this season. Tuesday marked his first day back on the court for the Clippers in practice.
“Just having the confidence to keep doing it, not to feel the pain, and just continue to keep getting through it,” Lue added. “So, it was good to see him on the floor and it gave us a little juice today just for our guys seeing him on the floor, it really picked up our energy.”
Leonard has been a key part of the Clippers’ success since he joined the team in free agency during 2019. He has averaged 24.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game in his first four seasons with the team.
The Clippers reached the playoffs in three of four seasons with Leonard, which included a Western Conference finals appearance. This year’s squad has made due without Leonard in the lineup amid a 14–11 start.
“I give our guys credit, our players, no matter who’s been here, when guys have been out, we always feel like we have a chance to win and so just go on the floor every single night,” Lue said.
“Just finding ways to win,” he added. “It’s not going to be the same every night. It could be different every single night, but just trying to find ways to win, trying to find combinations to win. I give our guys credit, they’ve done that.”
Clippers guard Norman Powell has led the way with 23.6 points, three rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. His scoring average is a career best, and his rebounds and assists are above his career averages.
Leonard could take some of the load off of Powell upon return, but that will take time. For Tuesday’s practice, Leonard “did offensive script, defensive work, and just no contact” and “pretty much everything else” as Lue said.
“He’s got to do a lot more things to really get back on the floor,” Lue noted. “We just want to make sure he’s 100 percent.”
“We don’t want to get him out there, 70 percent, 75 percent. Like, let’s just take our time, make sure we get it right,” Lue continued.
Lue also tempered expectations of how quickly Leonard will be the impact player he is on the court.
“At some point, not right away,” Lue said. “But at some point, we need him to be Kawhi Leonard. And I think he can do that. And just seeing the year he had last year—68 games and how he played at a high level. He was really, really playing at a high level. So we just got to get him back to that.”
It’s not the first major injury for Leonard to bounce back from. He tore his ACL in 2021 and missed the whole 2021–2022 season.
Leonard didn’t miss a beat when he returned for the 2022–2023 season as he averaged 23.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game. Lue and company can hope for more of the same eventually this time around.
“I’m just happy he’s doing it again, he’s getting close and he’s really in a good space mentally,” Lue said. “So he’s just got to stay with it, stay with the program. Can’t get frustrated trying to rush back.”
