It appears that Gregg Popovich – shocker! – was right about the extent of Kawhi Leonard’s right hand injury. 12 days after player and coach offered drastically disparate timelines on the reigning Finals MVP’s prospective return to the floor, Popovich said that Leonard is still “weeks” away from playing again.
Here’s Pop giving an update on Kawhi’s status before his short-handed squad dispatched of the Washington Wizards last night. Via Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News:
“It’s going to be weeks,” Popovich said. “More weeks. That’s the way it is…”
“His hand doesn’t work,” Popovich said. “If it just hurt he’d play. He’s a tough kid. But his hand doesn’t work. It doesn’t catch things. He can’t do what you do — shoot. He can’t grab…”
“Each day a little bit, less pain, more function.” Popovich said. “Not near enough to go play.”
Leonard has been sidelined since injuring his hand in a December 15 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. The Spurs have gone just 4-6 in his absence – which has coincided with Tony Parker’s – to slide to seventh-place in the monster Western Conference.
Leonard said that he’d be back on the floor “soon” in the days immediately succeeding his injury, only for Popovich to provide a more accurate timetable – “indefinite,” the coach stressed – later that week.
It’s been an injury-plagued season for the 23 year-old. Leonard missed a portion of the preseason plus the season-opener with an eye infection, and struggled to regain full use of sight even upon making his 2014-2015 debut. He’s missed 12 games already this year, and that number will continue to grow as his hand slowly recovers.
What do you think?
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