Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard will be active for tonight’s rematch with the Mavericks after playing 24 minutes in Friday’s win over Dallas, according to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda (Twitter link). Leonard is likely to be on a restriction of about 25-30 minutes, adds Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).
This marks the first back-to-back of the season for Leonard, which is a significant development, especially so close to the playoffs. It’s a sign that the Clippers are fully confident in the state of his right knee, which required an offseason surgical procedure that kept Leonard out of action until early January.
“Kawhi has trying to do it for some time now, playing in back to backs, but our medical staff has been very cautious with making sure everything is right,” coach Tyronn Lue told reporters.
L.A. cruised to a 114-91 victory on Friday, so Leonard and the rest of the starters didn’t have to play heavy minutes. He was the team’s leading scorer with 20 points, making 8-of-17 shots from the field, while adding six assists and two rebounds.
Leonard has been expanding his workload lately, playing 38 minutes Wednesday against New Orleans, 39 minutes Monday at Orlando and 41 minutes March 26 at New York. The Clippers have won the last five games with him in the lineup.
Injuries have been a major part of Leonard’s story over the past decade, especially in the playoffs. He was only able to appear in two postseason games last year before being sidelined by knee inflammation, which eventually led to the surgery.
The Clippers will need him as much as possible down the stretch, as they’re locked in an intense battle for playoff positioning. L.A. entered the night in a three-way tie with Minnesota and Memphis for sixth place in the West and could potentially finish anywhere from third to eighth.