For the third straight game, Kawhi Leonard was listed as questionable on the Clippers’ injury report with a bruised left hip.
Although the injury was not initially thought to be serious, it was hard not to worry as time passed. Kawhi suffered a hip injury when he was hip-checked by Grant Williams during a game against the Dallas Mavericks. Kawhi looked grim but eventually ended the match. He has declared himself fine, but has missed two games since then.
Clippers head coach Ty Lue also mentioned that Kawhi Leonard will struggle daily with the injury. The injury happened on Wednesday, and Kawhi will be dealing with the injury 5-6 days a day.
One would have to imagine that if Kawhi Leonard doesn’t play against the Hornets, he will certainly play against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. The Clippers only have two games in four nights and will get plenty of rest. It made sense that Leonard wouldn’t play against the Thunder since it was the next day after the Mavericks game, but it’s been almost a week since then.
The LA Clippers should have enough of a roster to beat an underpowered Charlotte Hornets team, regardless of whether Kawhi Leonard plays or not. If they can’t beat Charlotte there will be bigger problems.