Throughout the offseason, the Los Angeles Clippers have been labeled as the team to beat this season. The biggest reason behind that prediction is the return of Kawhi Leonard to the team. The Klaw missed the entire last season as he rehabbed for his ACL injury.
Kawhi made his much-anticipated debut for the Clippers vs. the Los Angeles Lakers. Although he was on minute restrictions, he played more than 20 minutes. Leonard was trolled by an NBA reporter for playing his first game since 2013. It was a hilarious jab toward the Clippers star’s tendency to sit out games.
He did so once against the Clippers’ recent matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder. In Leonard’s absence, OKC comfortably defeated the Clippers, and the championship favorites dropped to a record of 2-2. Fans should expect Kawhi to regularly miss games during the first half of the season, he explained it will take time to strengthen his ACL.
Kawhi Leonard Has Earned A Lot Of Money While Playing For The Clippers
Last year, Leonard signed a 4-year $176.3 million contract with the team that will bind him to the team till the 2024-25 NBA season if he decides to opt into his player option.
Considering he’s considered one of the best two-way players in the NBA, it’s no surprise that he’s making a lot of money. But recently, an NBA fan on Twitter provided some insight into how much Leonard has made with the team in the last three seasons.
Evidently, he has sat out a plethora of games, and it has ballooned his earnings per game while donning the Clippers’ jersey.
Kawhi has made $32.7M, $34.9M, $39.3M in three seasons as a Clipper.
That's nearly one million per game played, or $29K per minute played (3.663 mins).
That's also $37.3K per point scored (2.860).
What a HEIST.
— Ernesto Cova (@ejcovap) October 26, 2022
Kawhi has made $32.7M, $34.9M, $39.3M in three seasons as a Clipper.
That’s nearly one million per game played, or $29K per minute played (3.663 mins).
That’s also $37.3K per point scored (2.860).
What a HEIST.
The 2x NBA champion has certainly been very costly for the Clippers. A huge contributor to that has been the fact that he has played just 111 regular season games for the Clippers since joining the team. But wait, there’s more. The same NBA fan also pointed out how much Leonard has made with each regular season win with the Clippers.
The @LAClippers have won 78 regular season games with Kawhi Leonard on the court.
That's $1.37M per win.
Oh, and they have zero (0) rings to show for it.
Why is nobody talking about this??? #LAClippers
— Ernesto Cova (@ejcovap) October 26, 2022
The @LAClippers have won 78 regular season games with Kawhi Leonard on the court.
That’s $1.37M per win.
Oh, and they have zero (0) rings to show for it.
Why is nobody talking about this???
It’s high time that people realize this could be a make-or-break season for Kawhi’s legacy with the Clippers. If he cannot lead them to an NBA title or at least an NBA Finals appearance, it will be safe to assume that his stint with the franchise has been unsuccessful so far.
