Kawhi Leonard officially was out for “personal reasons” Wednesday night in Denver, when his Clippers fell to the Nuggets (without Nikola Jokic) 126-103.
Those personal reasons were very legit: He was back in Los Angeles to be with family members who had been forced to evacuate due to the wildfires that have devastated parts of the region, a story first reported by Chris Haynes. Coach Tyronn Lue said pregame that Leonard had his blessing to go back to Los Angeles.
“You definitely have to take care of home,” Lue said. “And so he totally had my support, 100%. Going back, checking on his family and kids and making sure they’re well. And he got back, and they’re doing OK, so just happy and thankful for that.”
We all are happy his family is safe and well.
There is no word on how long Leonard might be away. The Clippers are scheduled to play at home on Saturday against the Hornets, the first game of a three-game homestand.
Leonard had just returned to the Clippers two games earlier after missing the start of the season recovering from an offseason procedure on his right knee. He has looked understandably rusty through those two games, scoring 20 points on 31.8% shooting, although he was a +22 in Los Angeles’ win over Atlanta.
Wildfires — combined with strong winds — spread rapidly through several areas of greater Los Angeles this week, with the largest fire being in Pacific Palisades, a town that climbs up into the Santa Monica Mountains (that fire also hit Malibu and reached into Santa Monica). Also hit hard were Altadena and Hollywood with separate fires. Five people have died as of this writing, more than 125,000 people have been placed under evacuation orders, an estimated 2,000 homes and businesses have been burned, and the fires have disrupted life throughout the city, including the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings postponing a home game against Calgary. If the fires continue and air quality in the region suffers, the Minnesota Vikings at the Los Angeles Rams playoff game scheduled for Sunday at SoFi stadium in Inglewood could be moved to Arizona.
