Since winning two NBA finals MVPs with the San Antonio Spurs and then Toronto Raptors, Kawhi Leonard hasn’t been an impactful figure in the NBA and has missed a gang of time due to injuries.
In the last five seasons the 15-year veteran has hauled in a whopping $237,638,376 in salary, while participating in a reported 188 out of 410 possible regular season games. One of his biggest critics has been ESPN’s $100M man Stephen A. Smith.
Stephen A. Smith Blasts Kawhi Leaonard As ‘Worst Superstar In History Of Sport’
Leonard’s incredible finals performances that included helping Toronto to the franchise’s only NBA title in 2019 offset the criticisms and complaints about his unavailability over the past half decade. With those accomplishments further in the rearview mirror, the scandal with the LA Clippers and his latest nagging injury, Smith is fed up with the two-time NBA champion’s inaccessibility.
“The worst superstar in the history of sports,” is how Smith described Leonard in a ‘First Take’ segment on X, posted after Shams Sharania reported on Tuesday (Oct. 27) that Leonard will miss several weeks because of “swelling in his knee. “
“I mean, of course his injuries are legit,” Smith said. “But he gets paid hundreds of millions of dollars. He’s a veteran and knows exactly what it takes to get ready, but he is a master at getting over. This man should give a master class because he is gonna get his money. … We all know what happened with the whole Aspiration thing, the $30M fine for [Clippers owner] Steve Ballmer, and we all know that Kawhi kept his money.”
“We know he dimed out the Clippers and left his uncle to hang and dry, and after all that he left the country (to return to) the Raptors,” Smith continued. “Now he’s rehabbing and getting himself healthy when he had all offseason to do that. There has been no one better than Kawhi Leonard at getting paid for not working. We ain’t even two weeks in and the brother is already getting time off. He gets paid to work part-time and does nothing for the league.”
Smith says the Raptors are title contenders if Kawhi is healthy, but he thinks Leonard will miss a large portion of games.
“The Toronto Raptors are title contenders and how much do you want to be that this man will miss 25 games. I actually expected this but not two weeks into the season. Halloween hasn’t arrived yet and the brothers are off. There’s only one Kawhi Leonard. He does nothing to promote the game or his team.” Smith insisted, as he brought his disparaging attack on Leonard to a close.
Kawhi Leonard’s body hasn’t been the same in years. He’s shown just enough in spurts to give fans and teams hope that he’s the same guy who was a dominant and available two-way NBA player. Those days seem long gone, and for all of the backlash Smith knew he would receive, he also isn’t alone in his frustrations.
“One of the few takes that I can’t disagree with!” one fan commented under the post on X.
“I mean the dude isn’t lying, he’s technically worst than OJ Simpson in my eyes bro,” a netizen said on X, comparing Leonard to the controversial Pro Football Hall of Famer.
“The only time I agree with him,” expressed another fan supporting Smith’s take. “He is as bad as you can be.”
A list of how many games Leonard has missed since the 2021-22 season.
- 2021–22 (LA Clippers): Missed all 82 regular-season games (plus play-in/playoffs).
- 2022–23 (LA Clippers): Missed 30 regular-season games (played 52), plus major time in the first round of the playoffs.
- 2023–24 (LA Clippers): Missed 14 regular-season games (played 68), plus most of the first-round playoff series.
- 2024–25 (LA Clippers): Missed 45 regular-season games (played 37).
- 2025–26 (LA Clippers): Missed 17 regular-season games (played 65)
