Footage surfaces of Kawhi Leonard working out at Intuit Dome

The biggest question surrounding this LA Clippers team has always and will always be concerning the return of Kawhi Leonard. The best player to don a Clipper uniform in the past half-decade is still yet to see the floor this season, but he has been steadily progressing toward a return after suffering from an extended period of swelling in his right knee.

There is no doubt that the question marks around Leonard's health have been more than a little frustrating for all those involved with the Clippers. From the fans to the coaching staff, not having him in the mix changes the expectations for this group. And while everyone wants him to take the right steps to come back as close to his normal self as possible, it can be mind-numbingly frustrating not seeing him on the floor at times.

Fortunately, Ty Lue has told us that Kawhi is in fact progressing in his return-to-play plan, and he confirmed this past week that Leonard had been able to get on the hardwood for some on-court activities. Now, on Thursday, footage has been leaked from some of those basketball activities everyone has been so desperate to see him return to.

Leonard was seen doing shooting drills at Intuit Dome

A video was posted on X (formerly Twitter) of Kawhi working out on the Clippers' home floor inside the arena bowl at Intuit Dome. The video, which has now made rounds across social media, appeared to have come from an Instagram story of someone recording from somewhere near the top row of the arena, but it is unclear as to who exactly recorded the footage.

In the 27 seconds of video, we can see that Leonard looks sharp. He is not doing anything crazy or out of the ordinary in the footage, but just seeing him do regular basketball things feels newsworthy at this current juncture. Kawhi starts with the ball in his hands, working against a defender. He gets a screen and uses the open space to knock down a three-pointer, which hits nothing but net.

From there, Leonard calmly trots to the free throw line, where he takes three dribbles and knocks down a shot from the foul line. He would of course be playing by now if he felt well enough to do so, but even seeing him do a standard shooting drill feels like a step in the right direction for him.

Kawhi is still a game-changer for the Clippers when operating at full health. Seeing him back on the floor should feel like a huge encouragement for Clipper nation, especially with as strong a performance as their team has put up without him to this point.