Spurs' Leonard (calf) held out again vs. Lakers
LOS ANGELES — The San Antonio Spurs ruled out All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard for his second consecutive game Friday night against the Los Angeles Lakers because of tightness in his left calf.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Leonard underwent an MRI on the calf on Friday.
“I just don’t want to screw with his calf,” Popovich said. “That can be a really tough injury. It’s not like anything’s ripped or anything like that, but it’s probably wise to be conservative and think about later on rather than now.”
Popovich said Leonard first revealed he had discomfort in his left calf after the team’s Feb. 9 victory over the Miami Heat. Leonard played the next night against the Orlando Magic, hitting the winning shot in a 98-96 win. Leonard also participated in the NBA All-Star Game.
The Spurs first held out Leonard from the team’s 105-86 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday, with Kyle Anderson taking his place in the starting lineup.
A four-year veteran, Leonard is averaging a career-high 20.2 points to go with 6.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game. He is shooting 51 percent from the field and 48.2 percent from 3-point range.
Leonard’s injury came soon after the team brought back power forward Tim Duncan, who missed eight games because of soreness in his right knee. Duncan returned to the lineup on Feb. 10.
San Antonio is also without veteran guard Manu Ginobili, who is recovering from testicular surgery and expected to return in approximately three weeks, and Matt Bonner, who is nursing a left calf strain.
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