The San Antonio Spurs’ Game 5 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night, and the subsequent 3-2 series lead it created, did not come without collateral damage.
Kawhi Leonard injured his left ankle during the proceedings, a setback that was painful enough to keep him off the floor for part of the fourth quarter and all of overtime. Imagine facing the league’s third-best team, by record, in overtime of Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals, without your best player. And then imagine winning. That’s what the Spurs did.
As for whether they’ll need to close without Leonard again, the man himself doesn’t think so, per NBA.com’s Fran Blinebury:
“Yeah, I’m going to be able to play,” Leonard said. “It was frustrating because I wanted to play. But I was happy seeing my teammates out there putting in a good effort and getting the win.”
Counterpoint:
Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard used Manu Ginobili's shoulder as a support as he limped off the floor to the locker room.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) May 10, 2017
Maybe the Spurs were just taking every precaution necessary, knowing the 25-year-old not only has a whole career in front of him, but at least one more game of the series in front of him. Win or lose, they probably just wanted to make sure Leonard would be fresh for Game 6.
Or, equally likely, perhaps they didn’t care about any of that. The Spurs have long prioritized the big picture over everything else. Tim Duncan’s late-career health is a shining example. The important thing, to them, will be getting Leonard right for next year and beyond. If he’s still in as much pain as he appeared to be in at the end of Game 5, his plans to play on Thursday could change.
For now, though, it sounds like he’ll play. And if he’s even close to 100 percent, you have to like the Spurs’ chances of closing out this series either then or in the winner-take-all Game 7. Those optics are the luxury of employing the best player in the series.
