Clippers remain committed to keeping Kawhi Leonard, Paul George

Chris Haynes: Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is weighing his rehab options after being diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his right knee, league sources tell @NBAonTNT, @BleacherReport. -via Twitter @ChrisBHaynes / April 26, 2023

Shams Charania: Clippers star Kawhi Leonard has been diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his right knee, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium . Leonard averaged 35 points in first two games of this postseason vs. Suns before the meniscus injury was revealed and he was shut down by medical staff. -via Twitter @ShamsCharania / April 26, 2023

Leonard’s inconsistent presence on the court for the Clippers has become an issue that is hard to ignore. According to Colin Cowherd, sources reveal that Leonard is not engaging with his teammates and coaches the way he should be. Cowherd said: “In two seasons, Kawhi Leonard has played 27 home games. Folks, after a while if you’re getting the understudy on Broadway, three of 4 nights, the understudy becomes the star, not the star. He’s just not available, he’s odd, he’s not verbal, he doesn’t communicate, I’ve been told, with coaches or players. This is who he is.” -via Basketball Forever / April 26, 2023

“I think I got a lot of good years in me, I know Kawhi thinks he’s got a lot of good years in him,” George said before Game 5. “I mean, I’m not going to put any pressure on that anytime soon. The only thing I can do is continue to just work on my game, work on myself and just try to be available as much as possible. … It hurts to not play and watch the guys put it all in the line and not be able to do the same. It’s very frustrating, and it sucks. It really does suck.” -via The Athletic / April 26, 2023

“It’s super frustrating to put so much into the season, put so much into this group and the organization to put so much into making a team that could compete, and again, year after year, just getting zapped by injuries,” George said Tuesday before Game 5. “It’s frustrating. It’s definitely frustrating. That wasn’t the reason I came here. I know it wasn’t the reason ‘Whi came here. We obviously had big plans to win and do something special for Clipper Nation. “But I’m a big believer of everything happens for a reason, and you just pick up the pieces and try to make a hand out of what you dealt with. So, that’s just how I remain positive. I’m very optimistic that our time will come. It’s just been a bump in the road that hopefully this period right here is the time that we have injuries and the next however long in my career that I’m past the injury stages.” -via The Athletic / April 26, 2023

Andrew Greif: Paul George called Kawhi a “trooper” and said not playing has been “real hard” for him. “People think that he’s out ’cause he doesn’t want to play… I think it just attacks his character, where people don’t understand. He’ll play through it. It’s got to be a reason why he’s out.” -via Twitter @AndrewGreif / April 25, 2023