Getty Stephen A. Smith during the 2016 NBA Playoffs.
For the second time in three seasons, the Los Angeles Clippers got eliminated from the playoffs because of a Kawhi Leonard injury, which caused ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith to put the Clippers star on blast.
“Here’s the difference between [Kawhi] and a Paul George or various other people, we see them get hurt,” Smith explained on the April 26 episode of ESPN “First Take.” ”We’ll watch Kawhi drop 38 one game, 31 in Game 2, walk off the court, and the next thing you know Ty Lue gets a ‘he ain’t available today…and he ain’t available the next game.’ You don’t know why, but you hear, and you hear, and you hear stories.”
Smith’s comments caught the attention of former Brooklyn Nets guard Jamal Crawford, who was quick to call out the NBA analyst.
“As if he’s trying to get injured. This is foul,” Crawford tweeted on April 26.
Stephen A. Smith Puts Clippers Owner on Notice
The Los Angeles Clippers thought they had a championship-contending roster when they mortgaged their future to land Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in 2019, but so far, they have yet to even make it to the NBA Finals. After suffering another early playoff exit, ESPN NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith says that the Clippers should force Leonard to retire.
“I’m not in any way questioning the legitimacy of Kawhi Leonard’s injury, but he is the absolute worst superstar you could possibly have on your team” Smith said on “First Take” on April 26.
“He’s barely ever there. And on top of it all, he does nothing to market or promote your franchise…Steve Ballmer and the Los Angeles Clippers should force Kawhi Leonard to retire.”
“Steve Ballmer and the Los Angeles Clippers should force Kawhi Leonard to retire.”
JJ Redick Comes to Kawhi Leonard’s Defense
Kawhi has a long list of injuries dating back to the 2017 Western Conference Finals when he landed on Warriors’ center Zaza Pachulia’s ankle, which ruled him out for the series. In 2021, Leonard suffered a torn ACL that held him out of play for several months and as a result, has had to deal with several nagging injuries.
He appeared in just 52 games this season, but injuries are one of the more unfortunate parts of sports, which is also unavoidable. As a former NBA player who dealt with injuries throughout his career, ESPN NBA analyst JJ Redick came to Kawhi’s defense.
“I mean this in the nicest way possible to both of you, but listening to each of you right now, it’s very obvious that you’ve played zero high-level basketball and you do not understand the requirements of doing that. A sprained ankle is very different than a sprained knee. A sprained knee for someone who has torn a quad tendon, and who has torn their ACL, is very different than someone playing on a hobbled ankle in the 1970s. It’s a terrible analogy,” Redick said in response to Smith.
“You say, ‘I’m not questioning his injury. You just said, ‘We saw Paul George get hurt. We didn’t see Kawhi get hurt.’ Let’s give the guy some credit. He did it in Game 1. He went out there and battled Game 2. Guess what? If he could play, he would play. “Do you not have empathy for someone who has come back from two major leg injuries? Do you not?”