What if, at the foot of the tree, the Clippers discovered a gift as a Kawhi Leonard fresh and available… With two days left, it's possible since the All-Star winger is beginning the end of his rehabilitation period and return to competition. On Wednesday, he trained, for the first time, normally.
“He trained today, with five-on-five with contact” reports Tyronn Lue. “It’s good to see him do that, and it went well.” He continues to check the boxes, one by one before his return to the game. He will accompany us on the road trip, but he will not play.
Starting this evening, the Clippers actually begin a series of three away matches with two meetings in Dallas, Thursday and Saturday, then in Memphis on Monday. Then, return to Inglewood, and Leonard could resume on December 27 for the Warriors reception.
The anxiety of relapse
“There will be days of rest during these trips” specifies Lue, while Leonard should participate in training sessions, while being monitored by the medical staff. “It’s always the same thing, we want to see progress” continues Lue. “You just have to keep checking things, making sure that when he's done with the five-on-five, with the contact, there's no swelling, there's no discomfort. And he can do a lot of rehab and stuff on the road with our team. This is why he accompanies us.”
One thing is certain, the smiles are back among the Clippers. “I see that he is more and more enthusiastic”concludes the Clippers coach. “He worked a lot to get here. So today, doing five-on-five with contact is a big step forward for him. Like I said, we need to continue doing what we're doing right now. The medical team was wonderful. He's a hard worker. Now we must continue to build on this foundation. We don’t want a relapse and we’re doing everything to ensure there isn’t one.”
