The Los Angeles Clippers are set to become whole for the first time this season on Saturday night when Kawhi Leonard makes his expected season debut against the Atlanta Hawks in Inglewood, Calif.
ESPN reported that Leonard plans to play after he was upgraded to questionable on Friday.
Leonard, 33, has struggled with recurring knee issues that cropped up again late last season, even missing an opportunity to play for Team USA this past summer at the Paris Olympics.
A six-time All-Star and two-time NBA champion, Leonard averaged 23.7 points and 6.1 rebounds in 68 games last season after he didn’t play at all in the 2021-22 campaign following knee surgery.
He missed the final eight games of the 2023-24 regular season and played in just two games of the team’s first-round playoff exit against the Dallas Mavericks.
In addition to Leonard’s debut, Terance Mann is expected to return from a fractured finger that required surgery and forced him to miss the past 12 games. Mann has averaged 6.3 points in 23 games (11 starts).
The Clippers have dropped consecutive games, including 116-98 to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday. James Harden sat out because of right groin soreness but is in line to return Saturday.
The team’s leading rebounder, Ivica Zubac (12.4 rpg), played Thursday but nearly was a scratch with an undisclosed injury, according to coach Tyronn Lue. To make matters worse, leading scorer Norman Powell (23.6 ppg) was 1 of 11 from the floor and committed six turnovers.
“They were blitzing him a little bit to make the pass so we can get open shots, so we took advantage of that early on in the game,” Lue said of Powell. “He was due for one of these games the way he’s been shooting the ball all year, the way he’s been scoring the basketball. (It) was a tough night for him shooting the basketball.”
Now comes a return home where Los Angeles has won 11 of the last 13 games in its new building. Saturday will be the lone home game for the Clippers in a stretch of six contests.
The Hawks will play in the Los Angeles area for the second time in two nights following a 119-102 loss to the Lakers on Friday. Trae Young scored 33 points for Atlanta, while Jalen Johnson added 19 after missing a loss at Denver on Wednesday with a sore shoulder.
The Hawks have followed a four-game winning streak with consecutive losses and are 1-2 to open a six-game trip that also has stops at Utah and Phoenix ahead.
Young’s 22.6 ppg average is his lowest since his rookie season (19.1) of 2018-19 as he continues to evolve as a star, with growth in areas outside of scoring. Young has scored at least 30 points in three consecutive games and has done it nine times this season.
“It’s unique when you have a guy at a certain point of their career, when they’ve had a tremendous amount of success individually to have a thirst for continuing to get better,” coach Quin Snyder said of Young “… I appreciate that, his teammates appreciate it, and it’s the right thing. He’s embraced it, and I’m glad to see it because it’s not always easy.”
Saturday’s meeting will be the first of two games between the teams this season, with a rematch set for March 14 at Atlanta.
–Field Level Media
