At this point in his career, there’s no debating that Kawhi Leonard is a superstar.
But that doesn’t mean that the Los Angeles Clippers forward doesn’t have his flaws.
In fact, Leonard’s recent injury history has played a major role in the Clippers being unable to advance to the NBA Finals since first acquiring him as a free agent in 2019. The 32-year-old hasn’t played in at least 70 regular-season games since the 2016-17 campaign, and while he appeared in 68 games this past season — his most since 2017 — he proceeded to play in just two of Los Angeles’ six playoff games before the Clippers were eliminated by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round.
On Thursday’s episode of First Take, Stephen A. Smith discussed the news that head coach Tyronn Lue has agreed to a five-year, $70 million contract to remain with the Clippers. And while doing so, Smith took aim at Leonard and his lack of availability in recent seasons.
“This is not a conversation about his ability when healthy… I could make a case this is the worst superstar in the history of sports,” Smith said. “He is a nightmare. You’re talking about the first four years of his time with the Clippers, he’s averaged 40.3 games a season. 40.3! He played 68 games this past year and then again he wasn’t available in the playoffs. Did you know Kawhi Leonard hasn’t been available for 15 of the last 19 Clippers playoff games?”
Smith proceeded to take issue with Leonard making “no effort to promote the game, to promote his team, to promote the NBA brand.” He also noted that the two-time NBA Finals MVP doesn’t even speak in his own New Balance commercial.
.@stephenasmith goes off on Kawhi Leonard 😯
“This is not a conversation about his ability when healthy. … I can make a case this is the worst superstar in the history of sports. He is a nightmare.” pic.twitter.com/5yJpxrUxpA
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 30, 2024
While some of Smith’s criticism was clearly tongue-in-cheek, his overarching point is that while Leonard’s ability isn’t in question, his lack of availability and unwillingness to do the things often asked of other superstars are worthy of criticism.
Moving forward, it will be interesting to see where Leonard’s time in Los Angeles goes from here, especially with fellow stars Paul George and James Harden slated to become free agents this offseason.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.