After another early playoff elimination in which Kawhi Leonard was unable to participate in four of six games against the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Clippers are left wondering what could have been if their squad had been fully healthy.
Speaking to reporters following Friday’s loss to the Mavericks, James Harden said it’s “definitely frustrating” to have a successful regular season but be unable to put their best five on the floor in the playoffs.
Leonard had inflammation in his right knee, which he had surgically repaired after tearing his ACL in the summer of 2021, and he missed 12 of the Clippers’ final 14 games.
Even in the two games Leonard was able to play against the Mavericks, he did not perform to his normal level. In Game 2, the two-time NBA Finals MVP went 7-of-17 for 15 points. In Game 3, he had nine points on seven shots and nine rebounds in 25 minutes, but his four turnovers were the most he had in a game since February 23.
Speaking to reporters on April 27, Leonard noted his knee wasn’t responding the way he planned after Game 2, but he hoped to return by
When Leonard, Harden, and Paul George were in the lineup this season, the Clippers were one of the top teams in the NBA. They were 26-5 from December 2 to February 5, despite Leonard missing four games during that time, and had the league’s third-best net rating over that 31-game span.
The Clippers’ 51 wins in 2023-24 were tied for the fifth-most in a single season in franchise history, although they have yet to move beyond the first round of the playoffs since reaching the Western Conference Finals in 2021.
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