With an annual salary of US$50 million, he fell injured again! As the boss of the Clippers, is Leonard competent for his job?

The new NBA regular season has only started for two weeks, and the Western Conference is becoming increasingly chaotic. The Thunder have an 8-game winning streak, and Alexander is really strong. He has scored at least 20 points in 80 consecutive games, ranking third in history. The top two are held by the ancient god Chamberlain. After the Lakers completely defeated the Warriors in the opening game, they have won 6 of the last 7 games. It doesn't matter if Doncic falls or Reeves doesn't play. There are always people who step forward. Even Ayton and Rui Hachimura can be the pillars. The team is indeed more united than in the past few seasons. The Warriors are weak and weak this season. As the team's second leader, Butler suffered another strain, and Curry is also fighting with illness. Just like the beginning of last season, the Warriors will have problems of one kind or another after just a few good games. But the one with the most problems is the Clippers.

The Clippers started with 3 wins and 4 losses. In the last two games, they lost to the Heat and Thunder in back-to-back games. Losing to the Thunder was reasonable. Kawhi and Bill didn't play, and the rhythm of the two old men Paul and Luo on the bench completely collapsed, leaving Harden alone. The loss to the Heat was disappointing. Tyronn Lue complained that the team made too many mistakes (Harden must be to blame for his 7 turnovers in the second half), but why didn't Tyronn Lue explain the tactics at the last moment? Open up and let Leonard shoot to kill the opponent again? After playing against the Heat, Leonard said he sprained his ankle. Leonard was not expected to play back-to-back games, but he himself said that he could play back-to-back games in the new season. It’s not terrible to give people hope but also to let people down. The key point is Tyronn Lue: I don’t know how many days Leonard will rest and there is no timetable for his return.

What do you mean, it’s time to guess again? In the 6 games Leonard played this season, he averaged 24.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. His three-field shooting percentage was 50%+40%+96%, which is indeed very beautiful. But the advanced data is ugly: when Leonard is on the court, the Clippers lose their opponents by 10.7 points per 100 possessions; when he is not on the court, the Clippers defeat their opponents by 21.4 points per 100 possessions; the On-Off value is -32.1! There are two reasons for this situation. First, Tyronn Lue essentially allowed Harden + Paul to seamlessly fill 48 minutes. Since Bill's performance was lower than expected, Tyronn Lue let the small player lead the second lineup, and high-level efficiency was dragged down. Second, Kawhi is in the fourth position and has tight competition (he has lost a lot of weight to relieve the pressure on his knees). This season, Kawhi has reduced his breakthroughs and mostly focuses on shooting.

But the second lineup has no breakthrough point. Paul can only pass the ball. Daluo is very slow. Dunn's offense is almost 0. Kawhi chooses the least labor-saving way. The effect is very poor: Paul + Dunn + Daluo + Kawhi play on the court for 28 minutes, losing to the opponent by 25.7 points per 100 rounds! Physical problems and confrontation problems may be the last straw for Kawhi. The ankle injury may be relatively minor, but it will come sooner or later. Of course, this is mainly Tyronn Lue's problem, but as the boss of the Clippers, Leonard is very incompetent in three aspects. First, Leonard really doesn’t want to play the fourth position, so he can say it like he has thick eyebrows, and it’s no big deal. He mentioned this topic last season, but not this season. He couldn't hold it in anymore and wanted to save face and suffer the consequences.

Secondly, an ankle sprain, compared to the various injuries Leonard has experienced in the past eight years, is considered the mildest. Does this need to be kept secret? Not even the coaching staff and teammates knew? Teammates should have the right to know, especially Harden, so that they won't turn a blind eye and try their best in every game, but there is nothing they can do! Third, when Harden complained that he was too tired (when he lost to the Warriors before), and when the Los Angeles media felt that the internal atmosphere of the Clippers was not right, Kawhi believed that the team made many mistakes and lacked passing. What’s the essential reason? A data reveal: When Kawhi is on the court this season, the Clippers' offensive efficiency is 112.8; when he is not on the court, the team's offensive efficiency is 125.6! Including the disastrous defeat of the Warriors and the disastrous Jazz, when he was supposed to stand up, he disappeared.

Maybe Kawhi will never be able to return to the level of the Raptors. Kawhi was out of action for more than two months in the regular season last season and did not return until January this year. He still had injuries that were manageable. In this case, when he reached the playoffs and faced the Nuggets, his averages of 25 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game looked good, but just like this season, the team lost 0.2 points per 100 possessions when he was on the court; when he was not on the court, the team won 5.1 points per 100 possessions, and his On-Off value was -5.3. Has it become a side effect? Since Harden decided to join the Clippers, he has been aiming for Kawhi's leadership limit to reach the championship level, but the reality is that Harden can indeed guarantee the Clippers to the playoff level. Without Xiao Ka, he can inspire more people to come forward. But this season is different. The bench just looks crowded, and the powerful scoring point Powell is also gone.

Bill averaged 8 points per game and Paul averaged 2.3 points and 3.9 assists per game. These two stars who had high hopes were far below expectations. In just two weeks, Harden was the only one left. It's not said that Kawhi shouldn't be injured. Injuries are also the most common thing in the NBA, but judging from Kawhi's way of leading the team, his efficiency, and his secretive attitude towards injuries, he is too disappointing. If this fight continues, the Clippers will have two endings. Tyronn Lue is getting closer and closer to dismissal, and the Clippers will be completely demolished and rebuilt next summer. As the team boss, Leonard is really not competent enough.