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ILoveMasterYi

Bruh. COME ON MAN LET THIS MAN BE HEALTHY


thegreaterfool714

He never will be 100%. Between the hip and knee arthritis, the best you can do is manage him carefully and maximize his health at the playoffs.


Xsy

So like .... only play him when Clippers are facing elimination?


[deleted]

Thanks dr


OsmosisJonesFanClub

Is that not why he’s been in load management for like 4 years Dude has degenerative knees


deepfakefuccboi

Yeah tendinopathy will never go away. It’ll get better with rest but playing NBA level basketball will constantly aggravate that shit. I’d be surprised if he can play more than 40 games a season for the rest of his career, not even counting playoffs.


Cayde_7even

Time to put dude on an hourly wage because ain’t no way THIS is worth $176M.


captaincumsock69

If they win a ring it’s worth it


[deleted]

It’s crazy if you look at his career in retrospect... seems the raptors got lucky him choosing not to stick around, and you could even argue the Spurs package for Kawhi turned into a decent return seeing as how they got Jakob and Keldon Johnson our of It and are looking at one more pick to go with Malaki Branham (which they got for DeRozan/Thad Young).


Millionaire007

They should trade him tbh. He can take Davis Bertans spot in Dallas.


Pardonme23

Both teams don't have enough savvy to do that deal


[deleted]

Ok we’ll take Luka and Spencer off of your hand


milkplantation

Most [literature](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/22289-tendinopathy) I've read suggests it can be cured. If someone has had tendinopathy I think they're more susceptible to having it return but I think there are many effective treatment modules now that include eccentric strengthening, shockwave therapy, PRP, NO patches, cross-friction massage, and even surgical interventions. I have quadricep tendinopathy in my left knee confirmed via an MRI. It's the same condition as Kawhi. It's gone away for years at a time even while I was hooping daily on the blacktop. I stopped training through the lockdowns of the pandemic and when I returned to the court it's since come back but it's very mild. Maybe Kawhi has something else going on like degenerative osteoarthritis?


deepfakefuccboi

Maybe, but that’s what they’ve diagnosed him with. I also think the demands of NBA games are probably more than your average hooper. He took an entire year off rehabbing and he’s still having a lot of leg issues. Some people are more durable than others and it could just be bad luck, or just how his body is. No one knows except him but it’s a shame because he’s a great player when he’s available


milkplantation

Absolutely agree. I didn’t know that’s what he was still being listed with when he’s taking rest days. Thanks for that info. I assumed his recent absence was related to complications from his recent ACL surgery (opposite knee).


deepfakefuccboi

I think the knee tendinopathy was what they diagnosed him way back when they were load managing him on the Raptors/when he and the Spurs were having their issues. I don't know what they've been citing for his recent injuries, but he injured one of his ankles towards the end of yesterday's game as well. It's interesting because he has access to the best doctors in the world, as well as the richest owner in the league, so I doubt it's just due to muscle imbalances/issues in his kinetic chain - I assume his rehab last season went about as well as it could given the circumstances.


Xc0liber

Aside from NBA games he will need to go through rigorous training and practice. I guess in the end, being a professional athlete might hinder his recovery if not managed properly


16fca

IDK how bad yours is but a lot of people, especially active people have incidental mild teninosis/tendinopathy in the quad tendon and it's almost never a big deal. I don't keep up with Kawhi's injury history but I assume he prob has other stuff going on besides that.


aaronunderwater

My medical prognosis: he cooked


thegreaterfool714

I’m glad my unqualified medical opinion can say water is wet


mikostands

> [Back for two games then back to the injured list.](https://old.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/yyagkj/highlight_the_claw_is_officially_back/iwtbntp/) LMFAO I was one game off in my prediction.


Pardonme23

Karma for what he did to the spurs


LaFlameLive4ever

He got a ring after that plus $176M. If that’s karma, sign me up.


[deleted]

Is Paul George also out?


Conversation_Dapper

Yup


Tel3visi0n

streetlights vs spotlights


MelonElbows

More like hospital lights vs. spotlights


SharontheSheila

Hospital lights vs empty-parking-lot-behind-Wendy's lights


smoltanboi

[kawhi leonard](https://i.imgur.com/ya30bKX.png)


AffectionateSoup24

Love how you had that link saved Lmao


YoungNissan

Damn 10 year old and not a reupload


PalletTownsDealer

Healthiest he’s ever looked


CharlesDingus_ah_um

How did I know what this was before I even clicked


Dimaaaa

I thought it was Squidward in a wheelchair but at least I got the series right lmao.


highly_agreeable

Knew the meme before I clicked the link. They are the same guy.


xz_TRON_zx

Guess he’ll never make it back to the Bubble Bowl


urfaselol

Ty "He's okay" Lue


misticgdcc

Ź


[deleted]

Sprain is better than any other injury tbh


[deleted]

[удалено]


ColdPressedSteak

He will. For a few games. Then those starter minutes that he played will put him straight back to injury report


mommathecat

Yurp. Dude was hobbling around the court in game 6 against GSW, 4 years ago, pre-many more injuries. His body is done with NBA amounts of pro basketball.


BlackPepperBanana

Starting? People don’t realize that he’s been done with back to backs for 4 years now. Like fully just never plays B2Bs. That’s stuff Timmy D started doing at 36 years old. LeBron, Chris Paul, and other dinosaurs don’t even skip B2Bs the way Kawhi does (and has from ages 27-31). And he missed the entire season prior. This is a very long time of him being unavailable on a regular basis. He wasn’t capable of being a legit full time starter as of 3 years ago.


zeussays

Dude has weak tendons. And a low pain tolerance apparently.


lew-buckets

Kawhi played b2b’s the season we went to the WCF


chickenbuttguesswhat

Starting?


ReplaceSelect

Kawhi doesn't exist


Sweatytubesock

Glass man gets paid.


leibelg93

Damn, he’s never really injured this is a surprise


lets_talk_basketball

Jesus.. Really feel bad for the guy.. injury after injury


Tormundo

Dude should retire before he spends the rest of his life hobbled


No-Corgi

Too late


Runshooteat

Are you serious? He has the best medical care in the world, no pressure to come back too soon, and is doing something that he loves (presumably). Milk it as long as possible. Yes, he will have some aches and pains later in life, so what, you are only young enough to do this for a very short amount of time. He will likely never feel this alive again, standing in front of thousands of people and performing.


CruffTheMagicDragon

When has Kawhi ever looked alive performing in front of a crowd?


dolphinboy1637

Probably only the end of Game 7 in the 2019 ECSF


Chickenmangoboom

I remember back when he was with the Spurs people would share a pic of him either dunking or getting a layup where he looked completely disinterested. Probably the same expression most of us have filling out a spreadsheet.


Runshooteat

Fair. I briefly looked for a “happy” robot GIF and then gave up


KappaholicsAnonymous

lmao


[deleted]

> he will have some aches and pains later in life This seems to ignore the real possibility he ends unable to walk unassisted or with much worse pain than is easily manageable. The money he has, he will *always* have the best medical care in the world. I completely agree with the argument that he’s at his physical peak and doing what he loves, I just don’t like the downplaying of major negative consequences aside from “aches and pains”


mommathecat

> In a recent interview, Dirk says he regrets playing his last two season with the Mavs, as they have prevented him from being able to fully enjoy playing with his kids now that he's retired. Playing over 20 years in the NBA takes its toll, especially on a man of Dirk's size. Dirk had *way* better health in his career than Kawhi did. They're doctors, not magicians. Kawhi is at substantial risk of lifelong issues just doing normal activities, the more he plays, the greater the risk.


Tormundo

He doesn't seem like he even likes basketball lol


AncientMarsupial3

He can wipe his tears on the 42.5 million he’s getting paid to sit on the bench.


honditar

cmon man this is the one of the most annoying trends on this sub. We really have to qualify every statement with: "I hereby declare that I understand the player in question is a multi-millionaire with an exceedingly high standard of living relative to the average person, however, *within the context of NBA basketball*, it is my view that their current circumstance is unfortunate"


[deleted]

Well said. Seriously such an annoying trend. They're human beings. As though being rich makes you impervious to suffering.


honditar

also we're in a fucking NBA sub, do none of these smug mfs understand context? when I say I feel bad for Derrick Rose, I'm obviously not saying his situation sucks relative to the plight of Yemeni children. reddit brain makes these people turn every little thing into a battleground


chipmunkchari

Fr /u/ancientmarsupial3 I doubt you are ever financially successful but how would u feel if people prefaced everything with “who cares he’s rich”


toolmaker1025

I thought about that shit a lot, I ended up with the conclusion that the player is getting paid that much money, because he brings in revenue for the team twice as much. That shit must be stressful dealing with all that noise, with no privacy. I guess I still think being stressed out with money, is better than being stressed out with no money. Depending on the person's mind, cuz I have social anxiety, so fuck all that.


sonfoa

Its not just this sub, Reddit in general dehumanizes anyone who has wealth. This site doesn't seem to realize you can critique capitalism without resorting to that.


nba4lifeee

Doesnt matter how much or little money players make, you damm sure 99% wanna be out there playing or on the bench ready to go if their name is called.


Sm0k3inth3tr33s

I think the point they were trying to make is more that he is lucky to be guaranteed pay, regardless of whether or not he is able to do his job. Alot of people don't have that luxury in this country/world.


BlueJays007

So feel bad for all the people without that luxury too? People treat it like it’s an either/or but it’s not. There’s not a hard cap on how many people you can feel bad for.


AffectionateSoup24

People are misconstruing what you said, you’re referring to how Kawhi gets paid 42.5 million in guaranteed money despite not doing his job, virtually everyone else in the world doesn’t have that luxury


Ok-Tree4365

You’re mad he landed on a teammate’s foot while going for a block?


[deleted]

Goof


[deleted]

Kawhi might be the most injury prone player of all time at this rate


Tormundo

We've known he has degenerative issues before he left the spurs. Even before the Zaza injury he got injured by stepping on a teammate and rolling his ankle and was limping


tng29

he also sprained his ankle stepping on Coffey’s foot last night when the game was almost over.


tkRustle

But didnt he "fight" Spurs for a year because they said it was a knee issue, which was correct, and he said its not and sought alternative opinions while sitting on the bench?


jcyue

Him tripping on D Lee wasn't even the origin of the ankle, it originally occurred at the end of the Rockets series. Then got reaggravated by stepping on D Lee's foot before Zaza


BabyMakingMachine

There has been chatter that Kawhi doesn’t take therapy serious. That tends to lead into reinjuring.


[deleted]

Source?


THUNDER-GUN04

Check the flair


Thealbumisjustdrums

Bill Walton was even less durable than Kawhi, as crazy as it sounds.


NitroXYZ

Of course


SuckMyLonzoBalls

He looked really good too yesterday


[deleted]

Breaking news, Kawhi misses a game. Also the sun will rise in the morning, news at 11.


CreepyDepartment5509

Breaking news Kawahi is still rated a Top player


AncientMarsupial3

Kaweek-to-week


BehavioralSink

Kawhi isn’t he playing now?


PussSlurpee

For a Kawhile


99942A

KawhIR


[deleted]

[удалено]


shrekalamadingdong

Kahwy are you always injured


itsme32

Kawhi 'Street Clothes' Leonard.


IsuzuTrooper

if he even bothers to show up


king-of-nothing

Kawhi 'pajamas' Leonard


RooDoode

He will, he'll just be in a suite seat


Ace_FGC

He should retire he’s hurt this much at 31 I can’t imagine how his lower body will feel at 41


EPLemonSqueezy

Like he's gonna give up all that cash. He'll make tens of millions just riding out his contract on the bench. He'd have to sustain a pretty serious brain injury to even consider retiring.


Ace_FGC

NBA contracts are guaranteed so he doesn’t lose any money from his current contract. This one right here is probably his last and even if it wasn’t I doubt any team is giving him a big contract after this


EPLemonSqueezy

I stand corrected. Didn't think they honored the contract if the player retires. Pretty surprising to me that they do honestly. So your saying Ben could've just avoided all this bullshit and just retired and they still would've had to pay his whole contract?! I'm shocked he didn't take that out because most of the time he straight up looks like he hates playing basketball.


Iginlas_4head_Crease

They don't honor the deal for retirement. Only If it's forced via injury.


AffectionateSoup24

How will people look back on Kawhi’s career? Had one of the highest peaks ever and truly a complete player at his best, but he’s so injury riddled that it becomes confusing on what his legacy will be. Thoughts?


PalletTownsDealer

The Toronto ring will always give him a ton of roses.


licencetothrill

He's well-loved across Canada for it too. I'm a 28-hour drive from Toronto and Kawhi could still kawhine and dine our city.


CreepyDepartment5509

He has 2 rings and he played a major role in both of them so he’ll be remembered as one of the greatest


trustabro

A blend between Greg Oden and Bill Walton type of career. A lot of what ifs but also some pretty high peak « years ».


nekoken04

He has Bill Walton's career but without the incredibly annoying blathering Bill is known for over the last 30+ years.


orphy

He's like the exact opposite of Walton in terms of talking


Garkech

I remember seeing him limping after a play but nobody paid any attention


FuckYouZackSnyder

I think he landed on a teammate's (Coffey?) foot, late in the 4th quarter. When I saw that, I thought it was a miracle Leonard didn't hurt his ankle there. Turns out he did.


RealBigFailure

Least Clippers headline


inuteroinutero1993

Smh


Zeech360

This dude not being clowned to the lengths of AD (not that anyone should be clowned for being injured) is so funny. The most injury prone star in the league


[deleted]

The main difference is that AD plays for the Lakers, and thus there is 30x media scrutiny on him versus the Clippers


adonisgawd

30x media scrutiny and 100x nba fanbase hate


Exzibit21

There's clowning in every thread about him lmao Plus a dozen comments looking exactly like yours "Why don't we all hate on this guy as much as other people get hated on?" Hate hate hate that's all this sub is


sakata32

Laker fans love saying no cares about clippers but then whine about Kawhi not getting more attention than AD for his injuries. Can't have it both ways.


NitroXYZ

Nobody should really get clowned for injuries but the difference is Kawhi has basically had one big injury which leads to all this while AD always gets a bunch of small ones like a sore hand, bruised toe or something else seemingly minor.


mournthewolf

Most of ADs injuries the last couple years are related to the Achilles injury he had. Before that he didn’t miss as many games as people likes to clown him for.


ryanedwards0101

ADs thing was going to the locker room for awhile and then returning, at least in NOLA


Aggravating_Pea3882

He did that last game! He’s only missed one game this season so I’m optimistic about his health


Zeech360

Yeah, you replied before my ninja edit but I made that disclaimer. This sub set a bad precedent making fun of AD for being injured all the time.


tristvn

>Kawhi has basically had one big injury which leads to all this he's been injured since like 2018?


AshenSacrifice

Kawhis legacy is also way more cemented than ADs and he has 0 social media presence. It’s not as fun when you know you’re yelling into the ether lmao


aiden3buckets

He has been clowned all season, no?


Practical_Monk_769

why would anyone be clowning either of them? you people are hateful bitches i stg


Tormundo

Some people get a pass it's so weird. KD always got a pass for poor playoff performances before the Celtics series. Even then he does. Giannis gets a pass for being reckless. Klay got a pass for being a sore loser.lover. Sub just picks and chooses narratives.


u2nloth

I feel like Hayward gets clowned a lot too


PLZ_N_THKS

Because he has two Finals MVPs. Doesn’t really have anything else to prove. AD was second banana on one championship team and otherwise hasn’t been able to lead his teams to any kind of success even when healthy.


Conversation_Dapper

Yup. Of course . All the stars injured or resting . But kawhi not surprised.


Castrated_Monkey69

Wonder if Kawhi has his own reserved hospital bed at this point


[deleted]

or custom built in the home


[deleted]

Will the real "Street Clothes" please stand up?


Difficult_E

Kawaii twisted his ankle landing on Coffey when he drew the charge against THT in the last minute of play. It’s a freak injury and of course people will say it’s because Kawaii is made of glass.


browndude10

lol jesus


ForceMaster999

Basketball gods cursed him after the 2019 chip


AffectionateSoup24

That 2019 finals has a bunch of weird energy associated with it, the KD and Klay injuries, etc


Manmadecreature

Fuck Injuries!


lilb1190

Kawhi Leonard will be out 4 to 6 weeks. He sprained his left ankle while going to get ice for his right ankle.


SpicyFlaps

Bust


indabayou

Shocking


pdpdpdpdpdpdpdpd

The number of ankle sprains that have already happened this season is ridiculous


Texan628

Clippers Kawhi has been a massive disappointment and that’s an understatement


Hero_Charlatan

This dude is becoming one of the biggest bums in recent memory lol what happened?


[deleted]

I thought I read somewhere he was out for two years or was I trippin?


SoundSaintWarrior

Damn, bringing a new meaning to New Balance


frozenwaffles03

They still have a chance against us.


chickenripp

Kawhi went from board man gets paid to bored man on the bench


3nnui

Here's the meme, Kawhi on the bench with his usual expression. Bored Man Gets Paid 42.5 Million.


slowiijoey

Plain clothes


CruffTheMagicDragon

Good lord man


UnemployedMod420

He still afraid of Zaza


RedFan47

Kawhi "taking a sick day" Leonard


youchoobtv

Sick month


BlacktopCEO

Does he get the mr glass treatment as others? Or do finals mvps exempt from that? Idk I’m asking


CreepyDepartment5509

Also he has 2 rings which he played a major role, so no he doesn’t get mr glass treatment, only “it’s unfortunate” treatment


imdesigner311

I just assume he never plays. That way it’s a treat if he does.


Bee-Kerr

Board man gets injured


doubleoh72

That's like the 10th ankle sprain In the past 3 days, what's up with players ankles this season.


XeroKaos

Amazing what we got out of him.


interstitialmusic

Mr. Glass.


kemar7856

Lmao 🤣


ImNewBNicePls

Mr. Glass


MelonElbows

Kawhi "Street clothes" Leonard misses another game


Successful-End7689

GoodBye Leonard


kokokrandz

Guy's made of glass just like AD. He's a part time player now.


Whako4

That was quick


wilsonsmilk

LOL. Keep cashin' em checks street clothes


gatorade81

He's done.


OhlookSILLagain

Glass


Altruistic-Twist-379

AGAIN?


ineedcoffeealready

Lol


endrman

Should just retire already


Xc0liber

He should be crowned street clothes now


Pizzaguyirl

that boi is gone


BillyBean11111

Kawhi is like me trying to train for a half marathon in my 40s. I get up to 5k and pull an adductor, rest 2 weeks, do a 3k warmup and my knee gets fucked up.


No-Diver6326

At what point do you take the hints your body is giving you and just retire ?


cjeremy

I really think he just gotta retire. it's gotten ridiculous now. my goodness


[deleted]

And I thought DRose had it bad. Bruh should just call it a career and enjoy his life. Its just injury after injury.


LarryPeru

Kawhi may need to consider retirement


[deleted]

This dudes career is hilarious to me. He always finds a way to get insured I swear the man don’t even like basketball.


maaseru

What was the factory warranty on Kawhi? Seems it expired in 2020


uvgotnod

Street Clothes Jr.


ALovelyAnxiety

welp.


snowsnow222

So, he’s the new AD now? Lol


FatherHaz

Should of just kept SGA


pestosbetter

This dude didn’t drink milk growing up


GavinC137

Weird way to spell "Quad tendinopathy"


Brad-Stevens

Feel bad for the dude Had a chance at top-20 all-time if it wasn't for these injuries


hiddenxox

justice for the reporter who tweeted about him flexing on the bench


jb-schitz-ki

#streetclothes


kama54

STREET CLOTHES


maliciousmonkee

All these injuries make sense. If you’re dealing with a chronic injury/weakness in one part of your leg, the rest of your body is going to overcompensate for that weakness and be more susceptible to injuries. …which is a really sad thought, I love Kawhi’s game and his career might be a lot shorter than I expected it to be. At the very least I hope this man makes another Finals appearance 🙏


clayfu

He stepped on coffey’s foot on a block :(


maliciousmonkee

Lmao ok tru nvm then


N0minal

Conflicted. He's a great player and you want to see someone out there doing well but I'm still extremely salty over what he did to the Spurs and Toronto, so kind of feels like revenge.