A former strength and conditioning coach for the Los Angeles Clippers is suing the team, saying it broke the rules in attracting Kawhi Leonard and also mismanaged the star’s injuries.
Randy Shelton claimed in the suit the effort to land Leonard, of which he was a part, “leapt well beyond the bounds of the NBA constitution” in terms of tampering with another’s team’s players, according to ESPN.
Shelton said he kept in contact with Clippers management about Leonard while Leonard was under contract with the San Antonio Spurs and later the Toronto Raptors.
Shelton said he and Leonard remained in touch after the player reached the NBA and that Clippers officials promised him a job with the team if Leonard joined the Clippers.
The clippers signed Leonard in 2019 after he became a free agent.
The lawsuit said Shelton was excluded from conversations about Leonard’s recovery from a 2021 knee injury.
After returning to action in October 2022, Leonard missed games due to knee and ankle problems before he tore his right meniscus in a playoff game.
Shelton said that at the time he wrote a memo to team management saying the “mishandling of Kawhi Leonard’s injury and return-to-play protocol has been mind-blowing” and that “the disregard for his recovery process is unacceptable.”
Shelton said he was let go in July 2023, and not paid for expenses that were owed.
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“We hope that our client’s lawsuit will serve as a wakeup call to the Clippers organization that their players are not just dollar values but are humans requiring proper — and not hastened — health and recovery treatment for the careers and lives afterwards,” John David, an attorney for Shelton, said in a statement.
Last season, Leonard played in 68 regular-season games, which was the highest number of games since the 2016-17 season.
Since joining the Clippers in 2019, Leonard has missed 179 of a possible 435 games.
Leonard is currently on the out indefinitely due to inflammation in his right knee.
The Clippers responded to the lawsuit with a statement, according to The New York Times.
“Mr. Shelton’s claims were investigated and found to be without merit. We honored Mr. Shelton’s employment contract and paid him in full. This lawsuit is a belated attempt to shake down the Clippers based on accusations that Mr. Shelton should know are false,” the statement said.
The NBA also responded with a statement, according to Sports Illustrated.
“We are reviewing the court filings in this matter,” the NBA said.
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