Kawhi Leonard returns to five-on-five play at Clippers practice

Friday marked what Clippers coach Tyronn Lue called the first positive sign for Kawhi Leonard’s recovery from stiffness in his surgically repaired right knee after the All-Star forward took part in what the coach said was five-on-five play before practice.

Leonard first felt the stiffness Oct. 25 in Oklahoma City. His last game was Oct. 23.

Speaking before practice at the Clippers’ Playa Vista facility, Lue said he did not know whether Leonard would continue to play off of the bench when he returns as he had during his only two games this season. Starting Leonard would allow Lue to finally set his rotations, allowing Leonard’s teammates to more quickly find their rhythm and grow comfortable with their assigned roles.

The tradeoff, by the Clippers’ calculus, is that so long as Leonard is playing a restricted number of minutes, starting him means they might not be able to play him at the end of games since the team is wary of how long Leonard sits between his stints on the floor.

Such decisions do not appear imminent, however, as Lue mixed a dose of caution into his optimism that Leonard is getting closer to a return.

“He looked pretty good,” Lue said. “Still have a ways to go but that was the first sign of positivity of him getting on the floor, playing five on five.

“It’s going to take a few more opportunities to get that in and kind of reassess and see how he’s feeling.”