Should Kawhi Leonard consider retirement? Clippers star's injury issues have made his situation difficult

Two-time NBA champion Kawhi Leonard has yet to suit up this season as he's once again being plagued with injuries. This is not the first time the LA Clippers forward has missed significant time in his career. In fact, since coming to LA during the 2019 free-agency period, Leonard has played a total of 229 regular season games out of a possible 390.

Leonard, 33, still has a few more years in him, but injuries have deprived him of much of his prime, preventing the Clippers from achieving considerable success. Because of these concerns, questions of whether he should retire have begun to loom over him.

In fact, former NBA champion Kendrick Perkins has said that he should consider calling it quits. While only Leonard truly knows the answer to whether he should retire, an objective perspective would probably be yes.

At this stage, it might be best for Kawhi Leonard to hang up the sneakers and call it quits. He left Team USA this past Olympics so that he could be healthy at the start of this season. Despite rest throughout the summer, he still was not ready to go when the 2024-25 season started.

The grind of the NBA season takes a toll and it doesn't stop in the offseason. If Leonard retires now, he could preserve his health post-retirement.

While there is always the competitive spirit that makes people want to play on forever, there comes a point where you have to listen to your body. The reality appears to be that he won't be able to stay healthy in the NBA, and the effects of injuries linger post-retirement. Many players need surgeries and years of physio after they retire, and some injuries never truly heal.

When he's on the court, there's no denying Leonard is one of the best two-way stars. He had one of the highest ceilings and fans probably never saw him at his true peak.

Leonard earned six All-Star nods, two Defensive Player of the Year awards (2015-2016) and he has two NBA championships to his name, one with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 and another with the Toronto Raptors in 2019. With those two titles, he also earned two Finals MVP awards.

Kawhi Leonard has earned the respect of his peers, he's earned the respect of the media and fans for what he was able to accomplish when healthy. No one would blame him if he prioritizes his health over everything else. He could remain in the league for a few more years, but what would the rest of his career look like?

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Kawhi Leonard's tricky contract with the LA Clippers

Kawhi Leonard's contract situation is quite tricky considering he isn't playing. Just last season, he signed a three-year extension worth $153 million.

At the time, this extension made sense. When Leonard signed it, he was on pace to play the most games he's ever played in a Clippers jersey. He was also putting up the numbers expected from an All-NBA caliber talent.

However, all that came to a halt when Kawhi Leonard went on to miss the last eight games of the regular season. He also missed four of the six playoff games against the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round, which was likely a contributing factor to the Clippers getting eliminated.

Now that his lack of availability has come into question, his contract becomes less justifiable. He is under contract until 2026-27. According to Sportrac, he carries a cap hit of $50 million next season and $50.3 million in his final year.

That is money that could go toward giving James Harden a second star who can remain available. That is if the LA front office decides to take a win-now approach with the 35-year-old guard.

Alternatively, the cap space that Leonard takes up is cap space that the Clippers can use to maneuver in the trade market. The Clippers can take on big contracts from teams that want to offload players in exchange for picks.

This rebuild approach would send some of the Clippers' other top players to teams who want to win now in exchange for first-rounders down the line. Regardless of what LA wants to do, Leonard's contract and availability are causing complications.

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Kawhi Leonard has a target return date

Fans who are excited to see Kawhi Leonard return to action have a specific date to look forward to. According to The Athletic's Law Murray on X, Leonard's target date for his comeback has been set for January 4, 2025.

On that day, the LA Clippers are set to defend homecourt against the Atlanta Hawks. However, Leonard will likely be on a minutes restriction in that contest if that is actually when he'll make his NBA return.