The Los Angeles Clippers have had a disappointing start to their season, currently sitting with a 5-4 record. They were expected to be championship contenders but have already fallen to a lot of shocking losses this season, even being below .500 by losing 4 consecutive games in the opening weeks of the 2022-23 campaign.
One of the main reasons the Clippers have been sub-standard is the continued speculation on Kawhi Leonard’s injury status. Kawhi is returning from an ACL injury but is clearly far from being fully back on the court. He was managing his minutes and coming off the bench to start the season, but Leonard hasn’t played a game in the last few matches, worrying Clipper nation.
Lue: Kawhi Leonard without timetable for return.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) November 7, 2022
https://twitter.com/nonbiasednbafan/status/1589429273307545600
WTF
— KiLBJJ ⁵ ²³ (@KiLBJJ) November 7, 2022
https://twitter.com/Lakersx17/status/1589429284246269954
— Boss 🇩🇴 (@vbossXX) November 7, 2022
Does bro ever play
— Jo (@Jo80250423) November 7, 2022
Y’all got picks?
— average laker fan (@Dizrupty) November 7, 2022
Feel bad for Kawhi, seems like he’s never gonna be the same again. On a related note we need to stop putting the Clippers in conversations they don’t belong in now. https://t.co/e4iF0GSqxM
— ⚒️Shorty Wanna Be a Nugg 🏆 (@Tommy_B_Buckets) November 7, 2022
https://twitter.com/Tru3BanSAI/status/1589448573175107585
I feel bad for Kawhi man 😭😭 #NBA #NBATwitter https://t.co/Cy9gWcT3Cr
— Kevin Agustin (@_kevinagustin) November 7, 2022
https://twitter.com/Kingjuliuus/status/1589454604126724096
Head coach Ty Lue said that the team doesn’t have a timetable for Kawhi, which is extremely worrying. This is a very similar situation to what Kawhi faced in San Antonio, but the difference is that the Clippers are willing to help Kawhi with whatever he needs.
Is The LA Clippers Contention Window Already Shut?
Without Kawhi, it isn’t going to be easy for the Clippers to keep up with the competition in the West. They have no future picks to make trades for big stars, so they are stuck with the roster they have. However, 2-way 3-and-D wings have high value in this league, and the Clippers have a full roster of those tools.
Without Kawhi, the Clippers cannot contend. We saw it last season when injuries to Kawhi and Paul George slowed the team down so much that they exited in the play-ins, even with PG13 healthy. This was a narrow contention window given the ages of the stars and their injury history, so this 4th season for this Clippers’ core might be the final proving opportunity.
As wings age, their games tend to regress relatively quickly. Kawhi is already looking to play off years of injuries to his lower half while PG is no-less injury-prone either. If they can’t find health at the right time, their hopes of winning a championship may be hurt this season.
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