As we all know, this year's Clippers are a bit back.
In the playoffs last year, Leonard was injured and has not yet returned, and after the start of the new season, George also suffered an injury, and the Clippers suddenly lost their two championship cores; not only that, after the trade deadline, Powell, who just joined, only played three games and was injured - in terms of salary, the Clippers directly gave up nearly one hundred million.
Despite this, the clippers' other players are still competitive enough, including Reggie Jackson, many rotation players have played more than the value of the performance, so the Clippers are still in eighth place in the West with 36 wins and 38 losses, and 6.5 wins ahead of the 11th place Spurs in the West (29 wins and 44 losses), and it is likely to reach the playoffs.
As the playoffs approached, the comeback of Leonard and George was also on the agenda. Just recently, ESPN reporter Ohm Youngmisuk updated on Leonard and George's injuries.
About Leonard: Leonard suffered a cruciate ligament tear in last year's playoff second-round series against the Jazz and has not yet returned, he underwent surgery in July 2021, and by all accounts, Leonard has been working hard to rehabilitate and prepare for a comeback, but the Clippers are extra cautious about Leonard and do not have his comeback schedule at this time.
If the Clippers can make the playoffs and George and Powell can return, leonard can come back with only the team's medical permission, and the door to his return is always open.
About George: George suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow in December 22 last year, and after the injury, George did not undergo surgery, but chose to rest his right elbow, the reason for not choosing surgery was to preserve the chance of a comeback this season, but there is no comeback schedule at this time.
At Christmas, when the Clippers announced that George and Leonard could be reimbursed, this would have directly announced the end of the season for the Clippers, but the Clippers were still eighth in the West under Terrenlu's leadership, and the Clippers would obviously need George's offense.
George's current recovery is that he can shoot with his right hand in training and can participate in a slightly confrontational 4-on-4 training, and now with just three weeks left in the playoffs, the Clippers are also very cautious about George, but seeing him back on the training ground is certainly a positive sign.
Here, really have to admire George, really the wind of the general.
George's right elbow ligament injury is actually an old injury, he underwent surgery after playing the Jazz in the 2018 playoffs, and after being injured again last December, George could have accepted surgery to give up the season, but he did not do so, but chose conservative treatment in order to return in the possible playoffs.
And from the news that has been made, George's injury situation may be more serious than expected - George's original comeback time was March, but now it is the end of March, George has just been able to shoot with his right hand, and can only participate in a slight confrontation of 4-on-4 training, whether he can catch up with the playoffs is difficult to tell the truth.
Of course, an elbow injury is not as exaggerated as a knee injury, but for a player who is known for projection, the impact of this injury should not be underestimated - if it is from the perspective of the long term of the career, natural surgery is a better and safer plan, in case the return of the playoffs aggravates the injury, it is definitely not worth the loss.
George's professionalism has always been very hard.
In last year's playoffs, George actually proved himself to the fans, he led the Clippers to reverse the First Jazz in the West after Leonard was injured, the first time in the history of the Team to reach the Western Conference Finals, although the West was not against the Suns, but George averaged 41 minutes per game, G5 spelled 41 points and 13 boards are vividly remembered - under this premise, if George chooses surgery, no one will blame him.
Further back to the Pacers, after George suffered a major fracture and injury, he also returned with six games left in the regular season, in order to help the team impact the playoffs, but unfortunately his comeback that year was not ideal, and the Pacers did not qualify for the playoffs.
Now, years later, George is still like this, except that he is 31 years old – at this age, still at his peak, and still has a few years to do it, but it is definitely not young, and it is clear that George does not want to miss any opportunity.
The latest news, George's recovery is still relatively good, I hope he can be completely healthy and then come back, whether the Clippers can rush out of the playoffs, health is the most important, after all, there are too many painful examples in history of injuries and then injuries worsening.