According to Brett Pollakoff of NBC Sports, the healing process is a little tricky for Leonard’s torn ligament.
The Spurs are one of the best teams at playing with different players night in and night out. The “big three” of Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili get rest days and this team still finds ways to win on most nights. Although, missing another key component like Kawhi Leonard could be troublesome for the Spurs who are only at seventh place in the West with a record of 17-10.
Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express News reported that swelling has to go down in Leonard’s hand before they can even think about him returning to the floor:
Per Kawhi Leonard, he has torn ligament in right hand; must wait for swelling to reside before considering returning
— Mike Monroe (@Monroe_SA) December 20, 2014
Then, Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski says that sources told him Leonard could be back very soon:
Just a couple games before the likely return of Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard from a torn ligament in his right hand, league source tells Yahoo.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) December 20, 2014
It sounds like Leonard won’t be out for too long, but no team in the West can afford to get themselves in a hole. The Spurs are already in seventh place and they have the Thunder coming from the depths of the West towards playoff contention. In the end, the Spurs need Leonard if they want to get back to where they were last year, so they need Leonard to return as soon as possible.