National Basketball Association

Are Clippers' hopes dashed with Kawhi Leonard out for Game 5 and possibly beyond?

Updated Jun. 16, 2021 1:43 p.m. ET

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Nothing shifts the momentum of a series like an injury. 

After the LA Clippers roared back In their Western Conference semifinals matchup against the Utah Jazz, winning two at home to tie the series 2-2, their world was rocked Wednesday morning, when it was revealed that their superstar, Kawhi Leonard, will miss tonight's Game 5 in Utah and could miss time beyond that.

The Clippers have dominated the Jazz in consecutive games, winning Games 3 and 4 by 26 and 14 points, respectively, to climb out of another 0-2 hole in this playoffs. That effort has been led by Leonard and superstar teammate Paul George.

In Game 3, Leonard put up 34 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while George scored 31. In Game 4, it was much of the same, with both "The Klaw" and PG-13 dropping 31 on Utah.

The series now heads back to Utah for Game 5, and not only will LA be without Leonard, but it will also enter an arena in which the Jazz have a record of 36-6 this season, including the playoffs.

In the postseason, the Jazz are 4-0 at Vivint Arena when Donovan Mitchell is in the lineup, good news for Utah as the series becomes a best-of-three with Games 5 and 7 on their home court.

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FOX Sports NBA analyst Chris Broussard reacted to the news of Leonard's injury on Wednesday's "First Things First," saying that without Kawhi, the immediate future is bleak for the Clippers. 

"Obviously, this is devastating. … The Jazz are winning this series. If Kawhi was there, I would still give them a shot."

In Nick Wright's mind, even with Leonard in the fold, it would have taken a watershed moment of sorts for the Clippers to win this series, considering they haven't had much luck in Utah. 

He also pointed out the brutal nature of this season's playoffs, with injuries to several superstars throughout the postseason.

"The Clippers were already going to have to win one game in Utah," he said. "This just sucks, man. … The whole [playoffs] is just guys getting hurt."

Leonard is no stranger to missing time due to injury in his career. In 10 NBA seasons, he has never played 82 games in a regular season, and over the past four seasons, he has played a total of 178 regular-season games due to various injuries and load management. 

Also Wednesday morning, it was announced that Phoenix Suns superstar leader Chris Paul has entered the COVID-19 protocol and will be out indefinitely.

Paul's timetable to return to the court could vary, depending on his vaccination status.

The Suns completed a sweep of the Nuggets on Sunday to advance to the Western Conference finals, in which they await the winner of Clippers-Jazz.

The NBA world had more reaction to offer on Twitter.

There is a saying that a series doesn't start until the road team wins a game.

Well, if the Clippers want to win this series, they'll have to prove that to be correct – without their best player.

This is a developing story.

For more up-to-date news on all things NBA, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

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