Kawhi Leonard was considered one of the best players in his final years with the San Antonio Spurs. The Klaw was not only a great offensive asset but his defensive abilities made him all the more impressive. However, over the years, the slander directed toward Leonard has only grown. And yet, surprisingly, this 9x NBA champion still had nothing but massive praise for the two-time Finals MVP.
Kawhi Leonard was on top of the league when he won his second NBA championship and the first for the Toronto Raptors in franchise history. But since then, Leonard?s trajectory has seemingly plummeted.
9x NBA champion showers Kawhi Leonard with praise
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Since joining the Los Angeles Clippers, Kawhi Leonard has not been the same star-caliber player that fans were privy to see. And yet, he managed to receive the support and praise of none other than Mr. Logo himself, Jerry West.
Recently the Los Angeles Lakers legend made an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show. While on the show, West was asked to name a player that has the least value and deserves to have more weight.
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West replied, ?Being involved with the Clippers, people forget because he?s been injured so much, how great Kawhi Leonard is. This guy?s a man on both ends of the court.?
“People forget, because he’s been injured so much, how great Kawhi Leonard really is. This guy’s a man on both ends of the court.”
Jerry West says that Kawhi Leonard has become one of the most underrated players in the league 🧐
(via @RichEisenShow)pic.twitter.com/YRjDfJtnjT
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 5, 2023
West went on to add, ?You watch film playing when he was healthy all the time. And last year he had it going again really well. But he had missed so many games with injuries, I think people forget about him.?
Mr. Logo mentioned how the Los Angeles Clippers boast two of the best players on the court on both ends of the floor, bringing up Paul George as well.
How many games has Kawhi Leonard missed?
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Since he arrived in Los Angeles, Kawhi Leonard has been dealing with nagging injuries constantly. His first year with the Clippers was the most fans got to see him play. Leonard played 57 games, given the season was cut short due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
He played 52 out of 72 total games the following season. Leonard missed out on the entire 2021-22 NBA season recuperating from injury. The following year, The Klaw missed out on 30 games, playing only 52 out of the 82-game regular season.
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So, to cap it off, Leonard has missed a total of 147 regular season games and 13 postseason games since he arrived at the Clippers. This brings the total to 160 games he has missed with the team.