Kawhi Leonard will miss Game 3 of Western Conference Finals

Kawhi Leonard will miss Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals as he continues to recover from an ankle injury sustained in Game 1.

The Spurs will be without their best player and MVP candidate, Kawhi Leonard, for Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Warriors, per Gregg Popovich.

Leonard is still recovering from an ankle injury sustained in Game 1, when Zaza Pachulia stepped into his landing space after he went up for a jumper. The Spurs were leading by more than 20 points at the time, and went on to lose the game by two.

The Spurs star missed Game 6 of San Antonio’s second-round playoff matchup against the Rockets, and his team won by 29 points without him. Golden State, needless to stay, is a different proposition.

San Antonio collapsed without Leonard down the stretch in Game 1 and were blown out in Game 2, losing by 36 points. If it has any hope in this series, it’ll almost certainly have to win its next two home games. And if that was going to be difficult before, it will be almost impossible without Leonard, the team’s leading scorer and best defender.

Leonard had 26 points, eight rebounds and three assists when he went down in Game 1. The Warriors went on an 18-0 run immediately following the injury.

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The pressure now falls to LaMarcus Aldridge, who has had an up-and-down playoffs. He struggled in the first five games against Houston in the conference semis before exploding for 34 points without Leonard in Game 6. He couldn’t repeat the feat against the Warriors, however, putting up just eight points on 4-for-11 shooting in Game 2.

Popovich has always taken the cautious approach to his players’ health, but if ever there was a time to risk one of his stars, it’s now. San Antonio isn’t done yet, and will likely give the Warriors a bigger test on its home court, but a 3-0 deficit would surely be too great to overcome, even if Leonard returns.