The Thunder has yet to face the man that asked Paul George to leave Oklahoma City and join him in Los Angeles.
And they’re not going to get the chance on Sunday, either.
Kawhi Leonard will miss the Clippers’ game against OKC on Sunday evening. He’s listed as out due to injury/injury management as he deals with lingering left knee issues that have carried over from last year.
As expected, no Kawhi Leonard in OKC today. JaMychal Green remains questionable. pic.twitter.com/fzB3hfScz3
— Sabreena Merchant (@sabreenajm) December 22, 2019
Leonard did not play in the first meeting between the two teams in Los Angeles back on November 18. The Clippers won that game 90-88 thanks to a Paul George 3-pointer with 25.9 seconds left to play.
To be honest, it’s not a surprise that Leonard is sitting out Sunday’s game against OKC. According to ESPN, he hasn’t played in both ends of a back-to-back since April 2017.
Leonard only played in 60 regular-season games for the Raptors last season. He may not have invented load management, but Kawhi Leonard has it down to a tee.
And his absence in Oklahoma City means that George is going to have to shoulder most of the load against the Thunder.
It’s not just the scoring burden that George is going to have to deal with. Sunday will be the first time that George has returned to Oklahoma City since requesting a trade to the Clippers last July.
His request was the catalyst for an offseason of change in OKC. Shortly after George left for Los Angeles, the Thunder traded their other star, Russell Westbrook, to Houston for Chris Paul and multiple draft picks.
Though George wasn’t in Oklahoma City as long as Westbrook, there’s still reason to believe that Sunday could be emotional for the former Thunder star. It also remains to be seen how fans inside Chesapeake Energy Arena will great the player that they once thought could help them win that elusive NBA Championship.
The Clippers and Thunder will tip-off at 6 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on NBATV.