The LA Clippers began their preseason slate with a tough loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. It was a close defeat, but one where we saw a lot of positive signs from the Clips. LA showed that their offseason additions all bring something valuable to the table, and made it clear that they have a renewed defensive identity that could turn them into a legitimately dangerous team on that side of the ball.
After losing Paul George and Russell Westbrook, the Clippers opted to replace their collective skills with numerous smaller-name role players that can each contribute in their own way. Kris Dunn, for example, comes in as a stifling one-on-one defender, making life difficult for any opposing guard he goes against.
Derrick Jones Jr. will serve to replace much of the three-point shooting prowess and defensive ability that Paul George previously brought to the table. Guys like Nic Batum and Kai Jones will add depth as bigger wings, and Kevin Porter Jr. is another reliable ball-handler that can be used in a variety of ways in Ty Lue's system.
After Friday's game, Kawhi Leonard was asked which of his teammates stood out to him during the week of training camp in Hawaii. He responded by saying the new guys, then naming off several of those players and what was notable about them. However, not one of them stood out among the group to Kawhi. Of course, the last part of his sentence is the only part some people seemed to hear.
Kawhi Leonard says that he has been watching the new guys in camp such as Kris Dunn and Derrick Jones Jr., as well as observing everyone's progression, but adds "nobody stood out to me so far" pic.twitter.com/X6tMzFEqLS
— Law Murray 🏟️ (@LawMurrayTheNU) October 6, 2024
Kawhi's quote was taken out of context by some
"Just the new guys," said Kawhi. "Just watching them, the new additions we have. From Kris Dunn, to Derrick Jones Jr., to some of the young guys we brought in with Kai Jones last year, and just seeing how they can develop. So just watching them from day one, to day two, to day three, just seeing their progression. But nobody stood out to me so far."
If we read the full quote in context, it is pretty clear as to what Kawhi is actually saying. He has obviously paid a lot of attention to the Clippers' entire roster and how they have performed during training camp. He makes a point to list several of the guys and how they can be valuable. But it seems that among those new players, there has not been one that stood out among the rest yet.
Some will only read the last part of what Leonard says here and use it to frame the quote as if he is disrespecting his roster in some way, which could not be further from the truth. The popular sentiment seems to continue being that the Clippers are now undermanned, which gives way to misunderstandings like this one. However, we will see who is still poking fun at this team in a few short weeks.