Updates on Clippers star Kawhi Leonard (knee injury), including how long he will be out and when he will return

Update: Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers will not play against the Houston Rockets on Monday.

Kawhi Leonard of the Los Angeles Clippers will not play in Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans after failing to practice on Saturday.

Leonard will miss the game for the third time in a row due to knee tightness. The team has him on the injured list for his right knee.

Given that this is the first half of a back-to-back set, his accessibility on Monday will be important to monitor.

He is not currently cleared to play both games in a back-to-back set, but if he did miss Monday as well, there will be some concern that these absences are more than just injury management.

Leonard’s absence from both games against OKC had some speculating, but since the team was only there for a brief road trip, it made sense for Leonard to return to Los Angeles for treatment.

With a back-to-back following the two-game set in OKC, Leonard was already expected to miss one of these upcoming games, so any major concerns should be put on hold until Monday.

If Leonard loses Monday’s game as well, his absence will most probably be labeled as knee tightness rather than injury management, unless there has been a misunderstanding about the team’s strategy for him.

He will have showed up in only two of the team’s first six games as of Sunday.

Kawhi Leonard career stats

• 19.2 points per game
• 6.4 rebounds per game
• 2.9 assists per game
• 1.8 steals per game
• 31.3 minutes per game
• 49.3 percent field goal shooting
• 38.4 percent 3-point field goal shooting

About Kawhi Leonard