(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Team USA will have a plethora of great stars for the upcoming Paris Olympics, but they will not have Kawhi Leonard.
USA Basketball announced on Wednesday morning that Leonard will not be part of the team, despite traveling to Las Vegas to practice and prepare for the games.
“USA Basketball and the Clippers determined it’s in his best interest to spend the remainder of the summer preparing for the upcoming season rather than participating in the Olympic Games in Paris,” the organization announced in a tweet.
An update on Kawhi Leonard from the USA Basketball Men’s National Team. pic.twitter.com/84TjYpc90i
— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) July 10, 2024
For many people, this isn’t a surprise at all.
Leonard was announced for the team months ago but that was before he suffered yet another painful injury that sidelined him at the end of the season.
He only appeared in two games during the playoffs and his Clippers weren’t able to make it out of the first round.
Despite missing most of the postseason, Leonard was still scheduled to go to Paris and compete in the Olympics.
But as the opening ceremony grew nearer, questions about the Clippers star remained.
Now he is officially out of the Olympics and Team USA will definitely miss him.
When healthy, Leonard is a huge help for any team.
He has a career average of 20 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3 assists per game and put up 23.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game during the 2023-24 season.
It’s too bad that he won’t be able to help out Team USA but the hope is that he can get better before the 2024-25 season kicks off in the fall.
The Clippers want Leonard back for the full season so they can finally reach their postseason potential.
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