San Antonio Spurs forward and MVP candidate Kawhi Leonard tweaked his ankle in the team’s Game 5 win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday. He was questionable heading into what could be the Spurs’ series-clinching Game 6 outing on Thursday.
That can now be thrown out the window. San Antonio announced that Leonard will indeed miss this all-important Game 6 matchup between these two Texas rivals.
Per Coach Pop, Kawhi Leonard will not play tonight
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) May 11, 2017
The Spurs can punch their ticket to the Western Conference Finals against Golden State with a win in Houston on Thursday night. If the Rockets were to come out on top, it would force a do-or-die Game 7 this upcoming weekend in San Antonio.
Leonard’s absence will make things much more difficult for San Antonio. The All-Star forward is averaging 27.8 points and 7.7 rebounds while shooting at a 53 percent clip thus far in the playoffs. Jonathon Simmons will get the start in his stead Thursday.