The Los Angeles Clippers were pegged by many as preseason title favorites, but another season of no continuity because of injury hampered them.
Both Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were injured by the time of their first-round elimination, which prompted Stephen A. Smith to call for Leonard’s retirement. PG13 has responded to the criticism Kawhi, and he gets for not playing through injuries.
“If you can play through it, you’re gonna through it. If you cannot, there’s a reason why. Nobody wants to sit out for no reason. You can’t play through that sh*t because you won’t be yourself. What’s the point of going out there? I heard Stephen A. talk about how Kawhi could’ve given you 10 minutes or 5. Bro, it’s not about that. If I gotta go on the floor and I can’t be myself, what the f*ck am I on the floor for? Now I’m liable to get even more hurt because I’m not myself and trying to do shit I can’t do. It was a dumb take.”
https://twitter.com/feellikedrew/status/1653088924980461581
Kawhi went out of his way to play at many points this season, including late back-to-backs when the Clippers were trying to secure a top-6 seed. He also played multiple games for over 40 minutes to ensure the Clips win. If he and PG were healthy, they likely beat the Suns, given the tenacity the team showed even with them out.
Was Stephen A. Smith’s Criticism Warranted?
Asking for a player to retire when they’re clearly going through a lot of adversity regarding their body is just not cool. Even if Kawhi is paid a max contract, he naturally would want to stay on the court and help his team earn glory. The idea of Kawhi sitting out the first round is ludicrous, given how hard he had played the first few games before he was ruled out with injury.
Stephen A’s comments also came on the day of a great personal loss for Kawhi, so the comments seemed distasteful all around. It seems everyone will pray Kawhi can stay healthy next season, as it doesn’t seem like the Clips can afford to run this core back for another season after that.
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