Kawhi Leonard’s visit to Intuit in Inglewood, California, was a grand success. As the Los Angeles Clippers triumphed over the Lakers 116-102, there was an added caveat for Leonard. Playing under a minutes restriction for the fifth game of the season, the 2x NBA Defensive Player of the Year completed a personal milestone.
While he was on court for 24 minutes, dropping 19 points significantly contributed to this team’s victory. And with it, Leonard also completed 14,000 career points in the NBA. While this was definitely a big moment to celebrate, Leonard seemed controlled with his celebrations.
“I’m happy that I was able to play along enough to get to that point,” Leonard stated. He further added. “But for me though, I’m not looking at that as a milestone. I’m more of a team guy and want to get the win, get down, be the last team standing and that’s what I played for. But thank God for me to be able to get that opportunity, and most people don’t. So, I would like to take every opportunity and blessing and don’t take it for granted.”
Kawhi Leonard on reaching 14,000 points:
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) January 20, 2025
“I’m not looking at that as a milestone. I’m more of a team guy and get the win.. be the last team standing. But thank God for being able to get that opportunity. Most people don’t. I take every opportunity and blessing and don’t take it… pic.twitter.com/u6H7XsI6ii
Surely, Leonard made it clear that he would be more happy to see his team prosper. Meanwhile, as his family was impacted by the recent wildfires, one of the remarks made by the NBA star did not sit well with fans.
Kawhi Leonard’s Comments On Palisades Wildfire Leave Fans Offended
The Palisades wildfire impacted many lives, including Kawhi Leonard’s family. As the fires forced the NBA athlete’s family to evacuate their house, Leonard dropped off from his team’s road trip to support his family. However, after things became normal, Leonard made a comment that apparently did not sit well with the fans.
“As we know, everybody is not okay. You’ve seen the houses burned down, so it’s self-explanatory,” said Leonard.
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Reporter: “You live within that area that's affected by the Palisades fire. Is your house okay? Is everybody [ok], are your neighbors [ok]?”
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 14, 2025
Kawhi Leonard: “As we know, everybody is not okay. You've seen the houses burned down so it's self explanatory.”
(via @TomerAzarly) pic.twitter.com/vCjq9rtFNm
As per the fans, the reply lacked empathy and felt detached. Soon, there was criticism on the online forum regarding Leonard’s comments. However, Leonard did not provide further explanations on the matter. Thus, with Kawhi Leonard looking to regain his form, it remains to be seen how things pan out for him in the future.
