After a disappointing 121-100 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Los Angeles Clippers received devastating news. Their superstar wing Kawhi Leonard will be out for an unknown number of games due to a hip injury. This could potentially have disastrous implications for the Clippers as they seek to keep pace with their rivals in the race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
NBA News: Clippers Star Kawhi Leonard Suffers Hip Injury
Injury Details
On Tuesday afternoon, the Clippers announced that Leonard would miss the game against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday due to a left hip adductor strain. For those unfamiliar, the hip adductors are the muscles in the hip that pull your legs closer to your body. They are essential for hip, knee, and ankle stability. Injury in the hip adductor can cause a significant decrease in athletic performance and can be very painful. Furthermore, injured hip adductors commonly cause groin injury and pain among athletes. For an explosive athlete with previous injuries like Leonard, a groin injury could have a recovery time of months and be season-ending. Thus, it is wise that the Clippers medical team is holding Leonard out so that he can heal up.
Hip adductor strains can have several different degrees of severity. A grade 1 strain can have a recovery time of just 1-2 weeks. A grade 2 strain can have a recovery time of 3-6 weeks. The most severe strains, grade 3, can have a recovery time of up to four months. Hopefully, Leonard’s injury is only a grade 1 strain, and he could return in 3-5 games. However, the Clippers should be prepared for several games without their top star.
Possible Causes of Leonard’s Hip Injury
Leonard had an extremely uncharacteristic poor performance against the Timberwolves on Monday night. His 18 points were well below his season average of 24.1 PPG. Even more worryingly, his 8-17 shooting performance indicated something was bothering him. Moreover, Leonard has not met his usual standards in the last three games. He is “only” averaging 19/5/3 on 54.8 TS% in that span. For a hyper-efficient, high-scoring superstar like him, this clearly shows something is wrong.
While we may never know the exact moment when Leonard was injured, there are a few moments that could have been the cause. In the February 7 game against the New Orleans Pelicans, a steal from Dyson Daniels forced him off balance. This could conceivably have caused the strain. In the February 10 vs. the Detroit Pistons, he and Jaden Ivey collided while Ivey was going for a layup. Perhaps the strain is just from overuse. After all, Leonard is averaging a career-high in minutes per game (34.3). Whatever the case, the Clippers’ medical team has to be extremely careful, as the team cannot afford to have him unavailable for the playoffs.
Uncertain Future
For the last four seasons, the Clippers have been defined by the pairing of Kawhi and co-star Paul George. Once again, George must shoulder the bulk of the load until Kawhi returns. Two seasons ago, Leonard was injured during the playoffs. However, George and then-Clippers star Reggie Jackson were able to carry the Clippers to their first Western Conference appearance in franchise history. George must step up now as he did then to keep the team stable until Kawhi’s return.
Unlike last time, George has a third star to back him up and help assume some of the scoring responsibility while Leonard is injured. That is newly-minted Clippers pass-first star point guard James Harden. Harden has been having a stellar season so far, and it wasn’t too long ago that he was a heliocentric scoring machine. Aided by the eternally underrated Ivica Zubac, they should be able to keep the team relatively stable until Leonard returns from injury. However, any team will suffer when their top star is injured, and I expect the Clippers’ hot streak to be cooled at least a little while Leonard is out.
The Last Word on Leonard’s Hip Injury
This year’s Western Conference is extremely cutthroat and competitive. The Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Clippers, and Denver Nuggets are all within two games of each other. All four teams look nearly unbeatable at full strength. The Clippers cannot afford to lose pace with these elite teams. To do so would forfeit the first seed permanently and damage their chances at the title. I and every other Clippers fan hope that Leonard returns as soon as possible. Until then, George, Zubac, and Harden must all step up, prove their mettle, and carry their team.
