Once again, the Los Angeles Clippers are failing to live up to the expectations.
Having their two best players often miss games sure isn’t ideal for any team, especially from a chemistry perspective.
But that seems to be the trend ever since Paul George and Kawhi Leonard arrived in town, and you just never know when or if you’ll see them both on the floor any given night.
That’s definitely unfortunate, as Leonard continues to be one of the best, most impactful two-way players in the Association, even as a part-time player at most.
If you don’t take our word for it, just ask Joel Embiid, who recently went as far as to compare him with Michael Jordan:
“He looks amazing. You can count on him to turn into Michael Jordan in the playoffs. He looks great now, but I think he’s gonna be even better once you get to the playoffs,” Embiid said.
Joel Embiid on Kawhi Leonard:
“He looks amazing. You can count on him to turn into Michael Jordan in the playoffs. He looks great now, but I think he’s gonna be even better once you get to the playoffs.” pic.twitter.com/hUenFUMMdD
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) January 18, 2023
While comparing Leonard to Jordan could be a bit of a reach, he does a vast history of being at his best in the postseason.
Nonetheless, it seems like it’s been ages since we last saw him at full strength when it really counted, so who knows how he’s gonna perform at this point in his career?
Leonard has been the main advocate for load management and getting rest to get better for the playoffs.
But the Clippers need to have all their guys on the floor to develop rapport and fix their issues before the postseason, and having him in street clothes more often than not won’t help them with that.
So, all things considered, maybe he should just sit out until he’s actually ready and available to play night in and night out.
