Kawhi Leonard does not like the negative connotation attached to the ‘unc’ title in the NBA. When asked about the veteran-dominated Los Angeles Clippers roster, he was clear and candid about how he’s been an ‘unc’ since he was a teenager.
“I’ve been an unc [short form for uncle] for a long time. Since I was 16 years old. It’s nothing new. I started on a team with a lot of veterans. It’s nothing new to me. When I first came in, I was with a lot of greats. Tim Duncan, Tony, Manu, Stephen Jackson, TJ Ford, Richard Jefferson. It’s been like that for me,” Leonard bluntly noted.
The oldest Spurs team Leonard was on was the 2015-16 Spurs, who had an average of 31.6 years. They had seasoned veterans like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and LaMarcus Aldridge on the roster back then, when they lost in the second round of the Playoffs against the Thunder.
The former Spurs forward does not see the team’s mostly older roster as an issue. He’s played with a team full of veterans before, and it resulted in an NBA championship. But the fact remains that it isn’t just another veteran-loaded team. The Clippers this year have the oldest roster in NBA history, with an average age of 33.2 years. It is a record that they’ve snatched away from the 2001-02 Utah Jazz, who had an average age of 32.6 years.
Yes, they have a lot of experience and even Championship winners in their locker room. But the years of wear and tear also make them more susceptible to injuries. They have Chris Paul, Brook Lopez, and Nicolas Batum, who are all upwards of 35 years of age. Leonard himself has faced consistent inconsistency issues due to multiple reasons.
Thus, even though his positive spin on the important question is good media training on his part, but does not curb the doubts in fans’ minds. But one thing that supports Leonard’s argument is the durability with which Chris Paul and James Harden played the last regular season.
Paul played all 82 games last season at age 39, while Harden only missed three games in the regular season. Paul averaged 8.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 7.4 assists, recording 605 total assists in 2024-25, while Harden had 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game. So even at this late stage of their careers, they have been thoroughly consistent with their performance.
It was only Leonard who was missing for more than half of the regular season, and he played 37 games last season. Although he did average 21.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in those games, shooting 49.8% from the field.
If the Clippers remain healthy and injury luck favors them, they might be a serious contender in the confusing Western Conference, which is going through a lot of changes. You have the defending champs, the Oklahoma City Thunder, as the team to beat, but after that, there’s a question mark.
The Denver Nuggets have provided Nikola Jokic with some support during the offseason, and the Houston Rockets have added superstar Kevin Durant. The Los Angeles Lakers have a completely new offense run by Luka Doncic, while the Golden State Warriors enter the season with a revamped second unit and backcourt.
The Dallas Mavericks will be a team to look out for, but again, they will be without Kyrie Irving to start the season off, and Anthony Davis’ durability has also been an issue in the past. How fast Cooper Flagg develops will also dictate their fate this season.
All of this implies that the Western Conference could go either way, depending on how the chemistry takes shape, and if the cards fall in the right manner, the ‘uncs’ from Intuit Stadium might just become serious contenders.
