Kawhi Leonard’s tenure with the Clippers has been marred by numerous injuries and his status for this season remains uncertain.
As the organization plays its opening season in the brand-new Intuit Dome, a new complication has emerged: A lawsuit filed Thursday by a former coach alleges unsafe treatment of the franchise’s star player.
Randy Shelton was San Diego State’s strength and conditioning coach and worked closely with Leonard during the player’s time with the Aztecs. The lawsuit says the Clippers began their pursuit of Leonard — using Shelton as a middleman — in 2017, two years before Leonard joined the team.
Following Leonard’s devastating ankle injury in the 2016 Western Conference Finals, Clippers assistant general manager Mark Hughes emphasized discretion as he sought private health information from the San Antonio Spurs star through Shelton, the lawsuit says.
Hughes and Shelton spoke about 15 times by phone and seven times in person, Shelton said. The offer: a job as the Clippers’ strength and conditioning coach if the team could persuade Leonard to join them.
The team got its wish, with Leonard and Shelton joining in the 2019 offseason. From there, Shelton was relegated to the sidelines as a new assistant coach, Todd Wright, took over his responsibilities, according to the trial.
Shelton’s remaining job was caring for Leonard, a task that the suit claims was deliberately made more difficult because the team excluded Shelton from meetings and “withheld necessary medical treatments and information that impacted the Leonard’s training and health.
Leonard’s health problems continued. He suffered a torn ACL during the 2021 playoffs, and Shelton set a two-year recovery goal — a timeline the Clippers were unwilling to accept, he said.
When Leonard returned for the 2022-23 season, the team promised a minutes restriction and that the forward would not play back-to-back games, but failed to keep that promise, Shelton claims. After the first two games, Leonard complained of swelling and inflammation in his knee, and an MRI revealed cartilage damage.
The lawsuit says Leonard was given “biologics to fix the problem” instead of giving the player the necessary time to heal. Less than a month later, in November 2022, Leonard returned to play and suffered two torn ankle ligaments in one week.
Again, Shelton claims, the team demanded productivity, bypassing Shelton’s advice and withholding information from him. Shelton says the team began forcing him out shortly afterward.
As Leonard battled those injuries and the team’s record suffered, his minutes per game dropped from 32 in December 2022 to 35 in January and 38 in February.
This heavier load, which included a series of back-to-back games in March and April 2023, helped the team qualify for the playoffs. In the first round against Phoenix, Leonard tore his meniscus and suffered cartilage damage to his repaired ACL, requiring further surgery.
After the injury, Shelton complained to the team. He said, according to the lawsuit, that “the mishandling of Kawhi Leonard’s injury and return-to-play protocol has been astonishing” and that “the disregard for his healing process is unacceptable.”
The Clippers conducted an internal investigation, which concluded in June 2023 and found no wrongdoing. In July, President Lawrence Frank fired Shelton without cause, according to Shelton.
Last season, Leonard again suffered a breakdown that required another surgery. Shelton blames the team for pushing Leonard too hard.
“The Clippers place revenue and winning above all else, even the health and safety of their ‘franchise’ player in Leonard,” the lawsuit states.
Leonard missed the Olympics and is out to start the season. His return date is unclear.
The Clippers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In a statement provided to Chris Haynes, the NBA reporter who first reported on the lawsuit, the Clippers said: “Mr. Shelton’s claims were investigated and found to be without foundation. We honored Mr. Shelton’s employment contract and paid him in full. This lawsuit is a late attempt to shake down the Clippers based on accusations that Mr. Shelton should know are false.
