The Los Angeles Clippers will look to strengthen their grip on the No. 4 seed in the West on Tuesday night when they take on the eight-placed Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center.
The Clippers, however, will be without superstar forward Kawhi Leonard after the two-time NBA champ was ruled out of the game due to a new injury.
Los Angeles Clippers Star Kawhi Leonard Scratched From Kings Game
Leonard was a late scratch for Tuesday’s contest due to a sore right knee. What could be a bit of a cause for concern here is that the six-time All-Star was not even included in the injury report heading into the game.
Clippers head coach Ty Lue spoke to reporters before Tuesday’s showdown and he revealed that Kawhi is currently dealing with a new injury:
“Ty Lue says Kawhi Leonard’s right knee soreness is something new that popped up after the last game. He went back to Los Angeles for better treatment. Lue hopes Leonard can play Thursday against the Nuggets,” Youngmisuk reports.
Leonard looked fine on Sunday’s 130-118 win over the Charlotte Hornets, finishing with 23 points, five rebounds, and two assists in 37 minutes of action. As Lue said, however, the knee issue popped up shortly after that contest, and it has now been deemed serious enough to force him to sit out against the Kings.
The silver lining here is that Coach Lue seems optimistic about Leonard’s status for Thursday’s marquee matchup against Nikola Jokic and the defending champs Denver Nuggets. The Clippers still have an outside shot at securing a Top 3 finish in the West, but they will obviously need to log a win against Denver if they hope to achieve this lofty goal.
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