When healthy, few players can be as impactful as Kawhi Leonard. He’s an elite defender who can guard one through five and then put up 25+ points on any team in the NBA. Those two NBA Finals MVP awards are quite the cover letter.
But Leonard has rarely been healthy. And even when he’s medically cleared to play, he’s chosen to opt out of back-to-backs. He’s the one responsible for all that load management controversy.
Put in perspective, Leonard has been a very bad signing for the Clippers. Don’t get me wrong, he also got them Paul George, and they’ve been a playoff contender for years now. But let’s dig a little deeper.
Kawhi Leonard’s Insane Numbers With The Clippers
Kawhi Leonard has missed 242 regular season games since 2014. That’s three full seasons.Leonard has played 111 regular season games since signing with the Clippers in 2019. That’s 48% of the games.
Kawhi has made $32.7M, $34.9M, and $39.3M in three seasons as a Clipper. That’s nearly one million per game played, or $29K per minute played (3.663 mins). That’s also $37.3K per point scored (2.860).
The Clippers have won 78 regular season games with Kawhi Leonard on the court.That’s $1.37M per win. Oh, and they have zero (0) rings to show for it. And they were close to making the NBA Finals without him.
I know what you’re thinking: Newsflash, NBA players make a lot of money and not all of them win rings. Yes, I know. But you’re either healthy enough to play or your not. And Leonard has been a part-time player way too often.
Again, Leonard is one of the best two-way players of the past decades, maybe even in NBA history, so he’s earned his stripes. And it’s not like Steve Ballmer can’t afford to spare a couple of bucks on getting a franchise cornerstone for his team.
But maybe it’s time we start holding Leonard accountable. Let’s keep the same energy and the same narrative with keep with Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis. At the end of the day, you get paid to play.
