Kawhi Leonard was diagnosed with a torn meniscus, the injury kept him out of the final three games in LA’s series vs the Suns

Kawhi Leonard’s health has been his biggest flaw in four seasons with the LA Clippers. He has not played more than 57 games in the regular season with the team. Leonard also missed the entire 2021-22 season due to an ACL injury he suffered in the 2021 playoffs. Once again he finds himself injured and he was diagnosed with a torn meniscus. The two-time NBA Champion has struggled to stay healthy since joining the Clippers. 

NBA insider Shams Charnaia broke the news this morning about Leonard’s latest injury. It’s a torn meniscus in his right knee and it affected him greatly. The five-time all-star was dealing with a serious injury and missed Games 3, 4, and 5 of their first-round series vs Phoenix.

Head coach Ty Lue said before Game 5 that Leonard was “definitely hurt” and Charania confirmed that today. The Clippers will hope that both Paul George and himself will be ready for the start of the 2023-24 season.

“Kawhi Leonard, he’s been diagnosed with a torn meniscus in his right knee… This is an injury that clearly popped up in those first 2 games of this playoff series against the Suns”@ShamsCharania with the latest on Kawhi Leonard’s knee injury 🤕#RunItBack #ClipperNation pic.twitter.com/5s29UzA9VI

— FanDuel TV (@FanDuelTV) April 26, 2023

Kawhi Leonard just cannot stay healthy when the Clippers need him most

The LA Clippers were able to steal Game 1 from the Phoenix Suns, but could not respond after that. Phoenix took the next four games in a row to win the series in five games. It’s another disappointing end to the season for the Clippers who had high expectations coming into this season.

Despite only playing in two of the Clippers’ five playoff games this season, Kawhi Leonard was still dominant when he was available. He averaged (34.5) points, (6.5) rebounds, (6.0) assists, and (2.0) steals per game. The all-star SF has been ridiculed in the past for load management, but this injury was more than that.

Ty Lue said Leonard is known to fight through injuries in the playoffs. However, the organization was not going to risk their star player getting seriously injured by playing him when he was not 100 percent. Leonard is signed with the Clippers until the 2025 season.