On Friday evening, Kawhi Leonard and the LA Clippers lost to the Los Angeles Lakers (as the road team) by a score of 125-122.
Despite the loss, Leonard finished with 31 points, four rebounds and five assists while shooting 11/19 from the field and 4/6 from three-point range in 31 minutes of playing time.
LeBron James Made His Feelings Clear About LA Clippers Star Kawhi Leonard
After the game, Lakers superstar LeBron James was asked about Leonard.
James (via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin): “Kawhi’s awesome, man. He’s the best. He’s one of the best players ever. And I can care less about the injuries. There’s things you can’t control. You only can control the controllables.”
“Kawhi’s awesome, man. He’s the best. He’s one of the best players ever. And I can care less about the injuries. There’s things you can’t control. You only can control the controllables … That guy’s awesome.” – LeBron James in Kawhi Leonard pic.twitter.com/xsyfZoBwCX
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 21, 2026
Leonard has had trouble staying on the floor consistently since signing with the Clippers in the summer of 2019.
The two-time NBA Champion is currently averaging 27.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.0 steals per contest while shooting 49.2% from the field and 38.3% from three-point range in 43 games.
He has also spent time with the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors.
Luka can really talk-talk-talk to Kris Dunn when there’s no Kawhi, no Mathurin, no Garland, Dunn did a great clean no-talk job of making Luka work for every point in the 2nd half.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) February 21, 2026
After getting off to a weak start to the 2025-26 season, Leonard has helped the Clippers get back into playoff contention.
They are currently the ninth seed in the Western Conference with a 27-29 record in 56 games.
Following their loss to the Lakers, the Clippers will host the Orlando Magic on Sunday.
LeBron had nothing but praise for Kawhi Leonard:
“Kawhi is awesome man. He’s one of the best players ever. I was like disappointed on the 2024 Olympic team…(I was) looking forward to spending some time with him. I could speak about him all night” 🥹❤️ pic.twitter.com/5IymvB5Hns
— BronMuse (@BronMuse) February 21, 2026
Leonard is a surefire Hall of Famer, as he has had some of the most incredible playoff performances in recent NBA history.
Most notably, he spent one year with Toronto (and led them to their first title in 2019).
Splash Mountain back in DTLA 💦⛰️ pic.twitter.com/Gr1d5uk46V
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) February 21, 2026
As for James, the four-time NBA Champion finished the loss with 13 points, three rebounds, 11 assists and one steal while shooting 5/13 from the field.
