KAHWI Leonard is stepping away from basketball to be with his family during the Los Angeles Wildfires.
Leonard just returned to the Clippers after an injury, but will once again be absent from the team.
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NBA insider Chris Haynes broke the news of Leonard’s departure from the Clippers.
“Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is stepping away from the team to be with family who were forced to evacuate due to the Los Angeles-area wildfires,” he wrote on X.
The Clippers are scheduled to play the Denver Nuggets in Colorado on Wednesday, but Leonard will not be there.
Leonard just returned to the Clippers on Saturday and played two games before departing again.
He averaged 10 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in those two games.
In his six years with the Clippers, Leonard has played just 231 of the team’s 436 regular season games.
That is just 53 percent of Clippers games.
Fans seemed to have mixed opinions about Leonard leaving the team, with some supporting him and others criticizing his missed time.
“I’m gonna get hate for this… but Bro will find any excuse not to be on the court but still get paid,” one fan said.
“Bruh this man try whatever he can to not do his job,” another fan said.
“Praying for him and his family this is bigger than basketball!” a third fan said.
“Such a difficult situation for Kawhi and his family. Wishing them safety and peace during this challenging time,” a fourth fan said.
While some NBA fans may not be in support of the decision, other leagues are taking similar action with their teams.
The Los Angeles Kings in the NHL made the decision to postpone their game against Calgary on Friday night due to the fires.
Meanwhile, the NFL said that it continues to closely monitor developments in the area and will remain in contact with both clubs and the NFLPA” as a playoff matchup approaches in Los Angeles.
New rights deal
The NBA signed an 11-year deal with three networks for the league’s rights from the 2025-26 season.
And there will be no games on TNT for the first time since the network launched in 1988.
The Walt Disney Company will continue to show the league with 80 regular-season games across ESPN and ABC.
They will also show around 18 playoff games from the first and second round, a Conference Finals series for 10 of the 11 years, and remain the home of the NBA Finals.
NBC will return as an NBA broadcaster for the first time since 2002.
The network will show up to 100 games per season across it’s channels and Peacock streaming service.
It will also be the home of NBA All-Star and show approximately 28 playoff games from the first and second round.
NBC will show one Conference Finals Series for six of the 11 years, rotating with new broadcaster Amazon Prime.
Amazon will show 66 NBA regular-season games including one on Black Friday.
The streaming service is also the home of the latter stages of the NBA Cup and the entire Play-In Tournament.
Prime will also broadcast around one third of the playoff games in the first and second round.
The Rams and Vikings are set to matchup against each other on Monday night, but those plans could change.
Even rival coach JJ Redick has chimed in about the fires, praying for victims as his family too lives in the area but were able to evacuate.
“I just want to acknowledge and send thoughts and prayers to everyone in the Palisades right now,” Redick said.
“That’s where I live. Our family, my wife’s family, my wife’s twin sister, they’ve evacuated. I know a lot of people are freaking out right now, including my family.
“From the sound of things, with the winds coming, I know a lot of people are scared. So I just want to acknowledge that. Thoughts and prayers for sure, and hope everybody stays safe.”
