Clippers and the Mavericks are in a tight spot, tied at 1-1 after two games (109-97 and 93-96) in the playoffs so far. With Dallas now hosting the Clippers, the most important question on everyone’s minds right now is Kawhi Leonard’s availability tonight. Leonard was absent for 8 games before finally making a come-back in Game 2. His fitness is questionable, which is probably why people are more concerned.

Kawhi Leonard’s knee injuries have taken the best of him. But on Tuesday after making a comeback, he managed to score 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals in just 35 minutes of him on the court. He even shot 41.2% from the field, giving his team a major boost. After the game, he keenly stated that he would find his rhythm eventually, despite the loss. So, even though his team and head coach were elated about him showing up in Game 2, dark clouds seem to be going over the team again, because as per a tweet by NBA insider, Brad Townsend, his availability in Game 3 might be questionable.

Townsend’s tweet focuses on what their HC Ty Lue stated. As per the tweet, at first Ty Lue was hopeful that Leonard would definitely show up for practice before the matchup. And then came the second tweet, after which we saw Kawhi Leonard making it back to the updated injury report, as “questionable”.

In Townsend’s second tweet, as per Lue, his practice will be a “non-contact practice”, meaning Leonard might not be fully ready to participate in the third game. As of now, everyone from the Clippers’ seems to be “unclear” whether even Leonard’s minutes would be increased or not, if he manages to show up.

The LA side is working on making things easier for Kawhi in order for him to play as smoothly as he can, offensively. They are also ensure that he is able to establish a “rhythm” for himself. Earlier, he was often playing a rather “attacking” game, out of isolation, which probably could be why there have been many pull-ups taken for him.

Kawhi Leonard’s performance in Game 2

As per Ty Lue, Kawhi did not face problems with his knee after playing for almost 34 minutes in the last game on Tuesday. This was of course his first game after missing 3 weeks’ worth of playing, owing to his knee inflammation. So, despite missing 8 regular season games and 1 playoffs game, he was seemingly fine on the court.

HC Lue hopes they can get him to play for about 46 minutes, but despite the hope, and despite the 15 points and 7 rebounds in Game 2, Leonard was struggling. He wasn’t quite himself. He did see some progress in the second half, specifically in Q3 when Leonard was 4 for 7 from the field for 8 points, further leading him to take it up a notch and go for 5 for 11 from the field. This was probably it for Ty Lue. He said, “I thought in the second half, I think he saw (shots go in and) he felt good and he can do it. I thought it was a lot better….I just think mentally he got over the hurdle, ‘OK, I feel good. I can do this.’ I think you saw that in the third quarter. So, hopefully he can continue that to start the game tomorrow.”

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The Clips were leading by 6 points when the fourth quarter started after which Luka Doncic came bashing the team with his 2 major 3-pointers and 4 assists to push his team’s cause further. They eventually managed to steal the Clippers’ home-court advantage.

If Leonard misses the game or shows up unfit, it will be a great opportunity for the Mavericks to take a lead into the series. Luka Dončić will have a golden opportunity to assert his dominance in such a case. Paul George will need to step up and contain a heavier offensive load for the Clippers.