National Basketball Association

Will Kawhi Leonard's return finally net Clippers a championship?

Updated Oct. 20, 2022 8:39 p.m. ET

It's time again for star-studded hoops in Tinseltown.

And while the Los Angeles Lakers have unsurprisingly shouldered most of the city's spotlight when it comes to basketball matters, the LA Clippers are quietly seeking to supplant their arena-mates as L.A.'s hot topic.

Kawhi Leonard returns to the fold for the sturdy group, rejoining running mate Paul George and newcomer John Wall to bolster a unit about as complete as the league has to offer. But the Clippers and their starry duo have carried heavy preseason expectations since Leonard and George latched on with the team in 2019.

And while this year is no different as far as projections are concerned, LA's failure to launch has grown tiresome among its fan base. It needs to win — and do so soon — or owner Steve Ballmer's massive splashes for outside talent will be shriveled sapless.

"Undisputed" cohost Skip Bayless is buying in on the Clippers' hype ahead of their preseason opener against the Lakers.

"My starters are the true king of L.A., Kawhi Leonard, who's finally back, Paul George, Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris and Big Zu [Ivica Zubac]," Bayless said on Thursday's show. "And off my bench come John Wall, Norman Powell, Luke Kennard, Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington and Terrance Mann. I'm good. I kind of like my next six as much as I like my first five."

In Bayless' mind, the Clippers would've collected the Larry O'Brien trophy in 2021 if not for Leonard's injury.

"They were on the way to winning the championship two [seasons] ago. Then Joe Ingles happened. I think Giannis [Antentokounmpo] would've had no choice but to let it happen. Remember what Kawhi and PG did to Luka [Dončić]? Terrorized him. Luka was up two games to one. … I picked the Clippers to win it all this year. … Kawhi looked pretty healthy to me. He's been in the weight room."

Shannon Sharpe wasn't hearing Bayless' sentiments. He picked the Lakeshow to steal the show in its second game of the campaign.

"I'm taking the Lakers … against my better judgment," Sharpe said reluctantly. "I'm hoping we can get 75-80 points from our Big 2, and then get some timely shooting. I think Kawhi is going to be on a minutes restriction tonight, I don't think he plays 30-35 minutes. I think he plays something like 25 minutes. But the thing is PG goes off against the Lakers. I think he still holds that against them — ‘Y'all should've traded for me.' … He gets up to play these guys. …

"I think Kendrick Nunn gives us another 18-20, and the Lakers win 116-112. … I need AD [Anthony Davis] to have 30 and 14."

The Clippers, with Leonard reportedly set to come off the bench for the opener, enter the matchup as 5.5-point favorites in Thursday's battle of Los Angeles. If Leonard and George can remain healthy, they'll be picked to win more of their tilts than not. But they need the two to stay adroit if they're going to accomplish their chief goal.

The Clips' winning percentage takes significant dips when one or both men are sidelined at any point. With both available, the team has taken 73.8% of its games (59-21), but just 62.1% when Leonard is without George (18-11) and only 58.5% (31-22) when George is solo. When both are absent, the squad dips below .500, winning 46.9% (30-34) of the time.

As Leonard and PG go, so do the Clippers, and they're hoping Thursday night is the first of many victories culminating in the organization's first NBA Finals triumph.