INGLEWOOD — Clippers star Kawhi Leonard will be sidelined indefinitely because of his chronically injured right knee, the team confirmed Thursday.
With the regular season opener just six days away, the six-time All Star is in the midst of rehabilitating the knee that became inflamed during Team USA’s pre-Olympics training camp in Las Vegas. He has not taken part in any team drills during the preseason and won’t for the foreseeable future.
Coach Tyronn Lue said Leonard looked good in the days leading up to the Team USA camp but then experienced a setback.
“The swelling was down, everything was going in the right direction,” Lue said before Thursday night’s preseason finale against the Sacramento Kings. “He had worked hard to get to the that point and then once you start playing, you never know what’s going to happen. But he was in a position, we thought in the right position, to go forward.
“Like I said, it was a setback, so it was unfortunate.”
Leonard was sent home before the U.S. squad left to begin playing exhibition games overseas and began the rehab process soon after coming home, according to Lue. The process continues, and there is no timeline for his return.
The two-time NBA Finals MVP did not play in any of the Clippers’ five preseason games.
“Kawhi is working hard and he’s looking good, and so there is no timetable, nothing has changed from Day 1,” Lue said. “He’s still working to get him what we are trying to do and so until he’s 100% and he’s able to go, we have no concerns about him doing anything different. We’re just going to follow the path.”
Asked if he thought there was a chance of Leonard missing the entire season, Lue said no, “but I’m not a doctor either.”
Leonard played 68 games last season, the most he has played in a season during his five years in a Clippers jersey. But he re-injured his right knee at the end of last season and missed the final eight regular-season contests and was limited to two games in the six-game, first-round playoff loss to the Dallas Mavericks.
Then in May, he underwent a procedure on the knee to alleviate the swelling and was still experiencing some discomfort before the start of training camp. Lawrence Frank, the Clippers’ president of basketball operations, said before camp that the team would hold Leonard out of contract drills.
Lue said the team cannot wait for Leonard to get healthy. The players still need to compete and play hard.
“We’re going to win until Kawhi gets back,” Lue said. “We’re going to hold it down until he gets back. And that’s those guys’ mindset.”
Veteran forward Nicolas Batum echoed those thoughts.
“We still need to play. We got guys who will go out there and win games and play hard,” Batum said. “We got good players. We all want him back. We want him back ASAP.”
Last season, Leonard averaged 23.7 points, 3.6 assists, 6.1 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game while garnering All-NBA second team recognition.
On Jan. 10, he signed a three-year, $153 million contract extension.
