Kawhi Leonard Hit A Stepback Game-Winner In His Return Against The Hornets

Coming into this season there was hope that Kawhi Leonard would be a regular part of the Clippers rotation coming off of a year-long absence to rehab a torn ACL suffered in the 2021 Playoffs, but after starting the season coming off the bench in the L.A. opener and then their third game of the season, he took an extended absence to deal with continued discomfort. A three-game stretch in November again brought hope he might get back into the fold as a regular contributor, but he missed the last six games with continued injury issues — with Paul George also being out for that stretch — as the Clippers went 2-4.

Monday night brought some good news, though, as both George and Leonard returned to the lineup in Charlotte and helped lead the Clippers to a much-needed win — albeit it was harder fought than L.A. might’ve hoped. The Clippers led early and looked in control, up nine at halftime, but apart in the third quarter to trail by six going into the fourth quarter. They’d battle back to take the lead but saw it evaporate again thanks to some hot shooting from the likes of Kelly Oubre and Terry Rozier, and had to call on their stars to make big plays late.

Leonard, after a fairly quiet night, came alive when L.A. needed him most, getting back-to-back buckets in the final minute, first on a putback to tie the game (off a great play by George to tap a loose ball back towards Leonard under the hoop) and then what ended up being the game-winner with 1.4 seconds to play on a vintage stepback from the midrange.

Clippers fans at this point are aware that Leonard is going to miss games here and there, but it would certainly be nice if he can avoid some of the long, extended absences he’s had to take to start this season so the now 14-11 Clippers can try to establish a real rhythm. We’ll see if that can happen and it’s hard not to be skeptical given how little he’s been on the court, but in the meantime it’s nice to at least see these flashes of vintage Kawhi late-game performance.