Kawhi Leonard will not be playing for the Los Angeles Clippers at the start of the season due to ongoing rehabilitation for inflammation in his right knee, according to a report.
ESPN, citing unnamed sources, stated on Thursday that Leonard will be out indefinitely. He has not participated in the preseason, which ends Thursday night with a game against Sacramento. The two-time Finals MVP has also not taken part in any contact drills during training camp.
The Clippers did not respond right away to requests for comments.
At the beginning of training camp, Leonard mentioned that he would be ready to start on opening night if his knee allowed it.
“I never plan to miss games, but it’s just about my body,” he said late last month. “I’m a human being and we’re playing basketball.”
Leonard has been focusing on stabilizing his knee to be available for possible postseason games. He missed the last eight games of the previous season and played only two games in a first-round loss to Dallas in the playoffs.
“There’s some stuff we can do or try to do to make me last,” Leonard said last month. “We’ll see what happens.”
The 33-year-old Leonard first noticed inflammation in his surgically repaired knee on March 31.
He sat out the entire 2021-22 season due to a torn ACL in his right knee. Since joining the Clippers in 2019, he has missed 179 out of a possible 435 games.
The Clippers will begin their season on October 23 against Phoenix in their new arena in Inglewood.
