Media day revealed many answers to some big questions for LA Clippers fans. After an offseason that saw a significant amount of change to this team's roster, there was plenty to speculate on. Now, we have a little more rounded view of what we can expect from several of the Clippers' biggest contributors.
Of course, when discussing overall expectations for this team, the conversation will always revolve around Kawhi Leonard. Number two remains the Clippers' best player, and they will realistically go as far as he takes them in the coming year. For LA's ceiling to be that of a legitimate playoff contender in the Western Conference, Kawhi's health will have to be a non-issue.
For Leonard, that may seem like a bit of an ask given his recent injury history. Kawhi has not finished a season with the Clippers healthy since 2019-20. He is only getting older, and injuries to his knees have become a recurring problem, with Leonard missing four of LA's six first-round playoff games against the Mavericks back in April and May.
As of now, it seems that some progress has been made on Kawhi's current knee inflammation, which is a reassuring sign. He said on Monday that he expects to play on opening night. But beyond that, Leonard also explained that he and the Clippers' training staff have figured some things out, and they may have the solution to treating his injuries going forward.
During playoffs, Kawhi Leonard said he and his team will figure out how to deal with the inflammation. He and the team have gone through a variety of medical treatments and Kawhi sounds much more confident now that they have figured out a handle on the issue moving forward. https://t.co/ElszAMQbHt
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) September 30, 2024
Kawhi "sounds much more confident" about handling future knee injuries
NBA reporter for ESPN Ohm Youngmisuk reported that Kawhi and the team "have gone through a variety of medical treatments" and that Leonard "sounds much more confident now that they have figured out a handle on the issue going forward." Of course, on this topic, Clippers fans will probably believe it when they see it. However, this is still a massively encouraging thing to hear.
Kawhi has been through enough injuries at this point that it would make sense for the medical experts to begin thinking they have some way to manage it in a way that will minimize the time Leonard has to miss on the floor. Whatever that method ends up being, we will just have to hope it is what the doctor ordered.
It is probably not realistic to think Kawhi's body will simply act right for an entire season at this point. Be it early, middle, or late in the season, we can rely on him having to deal with something relatively frustrating. But if he and the doctors agree that they have some kind of plan that gives them any degree of confidence, that is probably all Clippers fans should need to feel some renewed optimism.