Kawhi Leonard will miss 6th straight game, but is “making progress” toward a return

The Los Angeles Clippers will be without Kawhi Leonard for sixth consecutive game when the team begins a seven-game road trip Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks.

Leonard, who suffered a sprained ankle in the fourth quarter of the Clippers’ loss to the Miami Heat on Nov. 3, he was sidelined with the same injury. As Leonard continues to miss games, the Clippers continue to falter.

LA has lost six straight games, all coinciding with Leonard’s absence. Things didn’t get any easier, as the team announced that Bradley Beal would miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken hip.

During a press conference held before Wednesday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets, Clippers president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank addressed Kawhi Leonard’s injury.

“He’s making progress,” Frank said. “With Kawhi, it wasn’t just a sprained ankle. He also had a significant sprain in his foot. His ankle, when he sprained his ankle, also set off a mechanism in his foot. He’s progressing really well. We’ll continue to treat him, he’ll feel better on the road, but we’ll probably be better next week.”

Leonard’s absence Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks means he has been out for nearly two weeks and has missed more than six games with a sprained ankle.

“The ankle kind of triggered a mechanism in the foot,” Frank added. “We consulted like three different doctors. It’s typical for any injury of our players. And they all agree on that. And it’s just going to take a while, for the inflammation to go down and then it starts to increase again on the field. He’s doing two, three treatments a day, and it’s just going to take a little while.”

Kawhi Leonard initially suffered an injury trying to navigate a defensive possession late in the fourth quarter against the Miami Heat. Leonard took a step back, twisted his ankle awkwardly and fell to the floor as Andrew Wiggins took a wide-open 3-pointer with 2:26 left.

Do you think Kawhi *didn’t* sprain his ankle last night? https://t.co/tovE9RUoh5 pic.twitter.com/2zzPFrN6Ko

— Lav Murray ⛲ (@LavMurraiTheNU) November 4, 2025

The positive news is that Leonard traveled with the team with hopes of getting back on the road. The Clippers begin their road trip in Dallas before taking on the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers. The trip includes a Celtics-Sixers back-to-back set, but then gives the Clippers two days off before taking on the Magic with no remaining backs on the road.

Friday night’s game between the Clippers and Mavs starts at 5:30 PM PST.