Kawhi Leonard earns Zach Lowe’s All‑NBA nod despite slow start and recent ankle soreness
On the Bill Simmons podcast, Zach Lowe picked kawhi leonard as a second‑team All‑NBA selection, a notable vote of confidence as the Clippers head into a gruelling March stretch. Lowe’s choice matters now because Leonard’s individual numbers — 27. 9 points, 6. 3 rebounds and 2. 7 assists with a 61. 9 true‑shooting percentage — stand out even though the team began the regular season 6‑21.
Kawhi Leonard gets the late‑season recognition
Lowe closed his second‑team ballot with Leonard, saying the two‑time champion has earned a place among the league’s top ten players this season. The endorsement came after a season that mixed elite scoring with stretches of limited availability: from the season‑opener through Dec. 18 (27 games), Leonard appeared in 17 games while the Clippers went 4‑13 in that span.
March schedule opens with a test vs. New Orleans
The Clippers begin a brutal March slate that includes 18 games, four sets of back‑to‑backs and no consecutive days of rest. Their first game in that stretch is against the 19‑42 New Orleans Pelicans, who arrive on the second night of a back‑to‑back after defeating the Jazz in Utah on Saturday and are unlikely to have Zion Williamson because of a sprained ankle; Trey Murphy has been out since the All‑Star break with a shoulder contusion.
Early struggles, scoring highs and minutes management
kawhi leonard’s season has featured uneven stretches on the box score: he had a ten‑point game vs. Utah, an 18‑point outing on 41. 2% shooting at Golden State, and a seven‑for‑21 performance against Atlanta that included one three‑pointer on seven attempts. Yet his overall averages and 61. 9 true‑shooting percentage explain why Lowe still sees him as All‑NBA worthy.
Leonard has also dealt with lingering ankle soreness since returning from the All‑Star break. He missed the Timberwolves game on Thursday with an ankle issue and has not played since last Sunday against the Magic; he did not play in the Minnesota game, which provided a week of rest before March. He has not logged more than 33 minutes in any outing since the break and has frequently carried a questionable tag on the injury report, though he was off the report a day in advance of Sunday’s opener.
The Clippers will be without Darius Garland, while John Collins remains questionable with head and neck injuries, but Leonard is listed fully healthy for the first March game. Whether he will have a minutes restriction is still unknown; coach Ty Lue has been intentional about keeping Leonard’s workload down in recent weeks.
Lowe’s public endorsement and Leonard’s statistical profile frame the immediate storyline: an elite individual season colliding with limited team success early on and careful minutes management heading into one of the league’s toughest monthly stretches. The Clippers face New Orleans to open March; Leonard is listed healthy for that game, and the team will begin the 18‑game month aiming to climb the standings while protecting its star’s availability.
