Has everyone forgotten that when Kawhi came back for those 9 games last year, it wasn't the quad injury that sidelined him again? He supposedly had a "partial tear" in his shoulder, and the leg wasn't even mentioned. That was in his 8th game back, and afterward he said in an interview that it "wasn't serious". He sat out a week, came back for one game where he played good, and it was 4 days later when the Spurs "shut him down indefinitely".
At the time Pop had this to say:
"It hasn't responded the way we wanted it to," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told the San Antonio Express-News on Wednesday.
"He's given it a shot. He's frustrated as . He wants to play badly. But if we're going to err, we're going to do it on the side of health and being wise."
"I'm probably more conservative than most, but the trainers, the rehab people, the doctors, the coaches, we all talked about this for a long time," Popovich said.
So did the Spurs rush him back that first time? Was his leg still bothering him then? This is what Kawhi said in a post game interview:"I had been just trying to stay ready in case he called me," Leonard said. "The hardest things have been finding my wind, running the play calls, building the chemistry again, the defensive rotations -- really everything. [Not leg pain.] I have been taking my time, not skipping any steps, so I can be healthy and ready down the road."
And here's a video (below) of his last game before they shut him down. He's not showing any sign of the leg hurting. None. In fact, the comments were all about how his speed was better, and he looked better than in any of the games since he returned. And remember - that was the last game before they shut him down for the season. Nothing I've seen adds up with what Uncle is claiming now. I don't know what happened, but it wasn't what we're being told.
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