Kawhi Leonard is one of the best players in the league when he’s healthy. The two-way superstar is an elite shot-creator and perimeter defender, and he notably led the Toronto Raptors to the championship in 2019. Recently, he suited up for his first game since the 2021 season against the Los Angeles Lakers, and he missed the entirety of the 2021-22 season with a torn ACL.
Recently, Kawhi Leonard opened up on the process for strengthening his ACL, noting that he has to ramp up to his full minutes’ load throughout the season, and adding that the goal is to be healthy for the playoffs.
You gotta gradually play minutes in order to get the ACL strong. Once you start playing 38 minutes first game, it could easily weaken up. I’m listening to the doctors with that. It’s a long season, we wanna get in the playoffs, and we want me to play in the playoffs.
There is no doubt that the Los Angeles Clippers have a championship-or-bust mindset this season, and it makes sense that Kawhi Leonard wants to make sure that he’s right for the postseason. Though the early stages of his recovery may be frustrating to watch as fans, it is all in the pursuit of a bigger goal.
The Los Angeles Clippers Could Win It All
There is no doubt that the Los Angeles Clippers have an opportunity to win the championship this year. In fact, former player Matt Barnes claimed that they are the team that could challenge the current reigning champions, the Golden State Warriors.
“I think the Golden State Warriors and the Clippers [are favorites for the title], you know, it would be history for the Clippers. Shout out to Ty Lue and how he’s been able to keep the train on the track, with no Kawhi all last year, PG missed a handful of games. The one thing about that team is that everybody knows their roles. Adding John Wall, to me the deepest team in the league is the Clippers, so, you gotta beat the champs, but if anyone in the Western Conference can beat the champs in the Western Finals, it could be the Clippers.”
Hopefully, we see the Los Angeles Clippers make a push in the Western Conference this season. They have the talent to win it all, and thus far, it seems as though everyone is playing their role to win.
Kawhi Leonard will obviously be key to the Los Angeles Clippers getting to the Finals. They fell short in the 2021 playoffs without him, but if he’s healthy come playoff time, perhaps the Los Angeles Clippers could finally win a championship.
