Clippers star Kawhi Leonard out for Game 1 vs. Mavericks

Los Angeles Clippers All-Star Kawhi Leonard is out for Sunday’s playoff Recreation 1 towards the Dallas Mavericks.

Head coach Tyronn Lue announced the news within the hours main as much as the sport. Leonard has been coping with knee irritation and was questionable previous to being dominated out.

The harm has sidelined Leonard since March 31, and he missed the Clippers’ closing eight regular-season video games. President of basketball operations Lawrence Frank held out hope on Thursday that he would possibly be capable of play Sunday.

“Progress has been made however the irritation must proceed to scale back so he can do useful basketball actions,” Frank advised reporters. “We’re hopeful he’s going to get there.”

Leonard’s standing for Recreation 2 and past is unclear. The Athletic reported final week that Leonard had an injection in his injured knee in early April in hopes that he would be capable of play within the first spherical of the playoffs.

The harm leaves the Clippers at a major drawback towards the Mavericks. Leonard performed 68 video games this season — his most since 2016-17 — and made his sixth profession All-Star crew because the Clippers secured a fourth-place end within the West at 51-31. Los Angeles completed 4-4 down the stretch within the video games Leonard missed.

When wholesome, Leonard’s a dynamic offensive participant and elite defender able to taking on a recreation. Accidents have plagued him all through his profession and restricted him considerably since he joined the Clippers in 2019. Previous to this season, he hadn’t performed greater than 57 video games in a single season with the Clippers and missed your complete 2021-22 marketing campaign with a torn ACL.