Kawhi Leonard will not play until the 2022-23 NBA season
There might not be a more unknown person in the NBA than Kawhi Leonard. He is currently sidelined with a torn ACL that he suffered in the playoffs last season. While there continues to be some optimism about his recovery, I don’t believe that we’re going to see him at all this season.
Ever since his days with the San Antonio Spurs, Kawhi has notoriously been conservative when it comes to his return from injuries. Heck, even when he’s healthy, he’s constantly not pushing his body as he became one of the faces of “load management.”
Kawhi may be trending in the right direction, but it doesn’t make much sense for him to try and push for a return this season. At best, he returns just in time for the playoffs and there’s no guarantee this team is good enough to make a real push in the Western Conference this season.