"Blackmailed the Clippers" - Stephen A. Smith flames Kawhi Leonard for alleging organization's role in Olympic non-selection
This summer, Kawhi Leonard was included in the Team USA Paris Olympic roster. However, he wound up withdrawing, with mixed reports surfacing as to what exactly transpired behind the scenes.
The way Stephen A. Smith sees things, not only does Leonard deserve criticism for his camp insinuating that the Clippers were behind his withdrawal, he also deserves criticism for what he described as "blackmailing the Clippers" organization.
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"He gets sent home, and then you have people in his camp, according to my sources ... blame the Clippers," Smith said. "They thought the Clippers were behind the scenes, having something to do with Kawhi Leonard getting sent home, which is probably why Lawrence Frank went out there and was so vociferous in supporting Kawhi Leonard.
"Because he wanted to make sure everybody knew he had nothing to do with it. And the Clippers had nothing to do with that. ... And that's just the end of it. ... How about how it all started? This man blackmailed the Clippers. ... You don't do what it takes to get Paul George. I'm going to the Lakers."
When Leonard first joined the Clippers, the front office parted ways with a number of assets, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and five first-round picks for Paul George. Since then, Leonard has often been absent from postseason action due to lingering injuries.
Brian Windhorst explains why Team USA sent Kawhi Leonard home this summer
When Kawhi Leonard arrived at the Team USA training camp for the 2024 Paris Olympics, many were surprised knowing he was going to play given that he played in just two of the Clippers' playoff games last season.
Given that he wanted to play for Team USA, many fans were even more surprised to find out this past week that Leonard went under the knife this summer and had work done on his knee, which will keep him sidelined for several weeks.
On First Take, Brian Windhorst shed light on the situation, explaining that when Kawhi Leonard arrived for Team USA's training camp, he was fresh off of surgery in May, which led to the team sending him home.
"He's recovering from surgery, but I understand why this is difficult to comprehend and compute because he had surgery in May and then tried to play for Team USA in June," Windhorst said.
"And Team USA took one look at him and said, 'You can't play, you're not ready to play.' And he hasn't played since. Since they sent him home from their scrimmages he hasn't played since."
Windhorst went on to explain that Leonard is "not anywhere close" to returning to action following his offseason knee surgery. This report is consistent with Shams Charania's report leading into the season, which indicated that Leonard would be sidelined indefinitely while rehabbing his knee.
While the Clippers lost a nail-biter to the Phoenix Suns in their season opener on Wednesday, if Leonard winds up dealing with another injury-plagued season, the team could get off to a slow start in the Western Conference.