“They Always Quiet”: Kawhi Leonard’s Fishing Ad Was the Comeback Clue We All Missed
On December 27, 2024, Kawhi Leonard broke his silence—not with a press conference or an injury report, but with a beautifully produced, cryptic fishing video. It wasn’t flashy. It didn’t even include a basketball court. But it told a story. One about patience, pain, and perseverance.
At the time, it felt like just another Kawhi-ism. Offbeat. Quietly compelling. Easy to dismiss.
But now, after watching Leonard torch the defending champion Nuggets in the first two games of the 2025 playoffs, it’s clear: that fishing video was a warning. A soft-spoken message from a player who has been defined as much by his absences as his brilliance.
And now? He’s back. For real.
“It’s the Nature of the Game”
The first video shows Leonard pulling up to a quiet lakeside. His phone buzzes—media appearances, rehab, obligations—but he’s looking for peace. He meets a fisherman. Or rather, himself. The fisherman hasn’t caught anything, but keeps casting.
“Good days, bad days,” he says. “But I keep coming back.”
That line hit harder than we realized.
When Leonard returned a week later, nobody knew what to expect. He’d missed nearly four months. He was coming off another procedure on that chronically injured right knee. Since joining the Clippers in 2019, he had played just 54% of possible regular-season games. His playoff runs? Tragic cliffhangers.
But this time, something was different.
From the moment he stepped on the floor, Leonard looked locked in. From January onward, he averaged 21.5 points on 41% from three, while the Clippers went 26-11—a pace that would win 58 games across a full season.
Now, in the playoffs, Leonard has elevated again.
Peak Kawhi, Just in Time
In Game 2 of the first-round series against Denver, Leonard was untouchable:
39 points on 15-of-19 shooting
3 steals
Elite defense, holding his matchups to 2-of-12 shooting
It was vintage 2019 Raptors Kawhi. The same killer efficiency. The same robotic calm. The same complete control of the game.
Through two playoff games:
▫️ 30.5 points per game
▫️ 71% FG
▫️ 50% from 3
▫️ Lockdown defense
This is the version of Kawhi Leonard that Clippers fans dreamt of when he signed six years ago. The one who could single-handedly swing a playoff series. The one who could finally bring a title to LA’s other team.
From “What If” to “Why Not?”
Leonard’s career has been a masterpiece… with pages torn out.
Torn ACL in 2021. Torn meniscus in 2023. Missed postseason games. An endless cycle of “he’s back” and “he’s out.”
Even this season, the Clippers prioritized the long game, resisting pressure to rush him back. No chasing awards. No sacrificing long-term health for regular-season wins. The goal? Get him to April in one piece.
And now, here he is. On the front line again. Leading the charge. Making believers out of a skeptical NBA world.
“I just want to be out there,” Leonard said. “I sat and watched these playoff games the past two years… It just feels good for me no matter which way the game goes.”
“When I Show Up, They Always Quiet”
That was the closing line in Part 2 of Leonard’s fishing series. Released a week after the first, it showed him walking quietly toward the water again, rod in hand. The air is filled with noise—questions, speculation, doubt.
Then silence.
Because Kawhi showed up.
It’s been easy to forget how dominant Leonard can be. The injuries have stolen so much of his career’s momentum. But through it all, he’s never stopped trying. That quiet fisherman is Kawhi, through and through—cast after cast, comeback after comeback.
The game has changed, the league has changed. But when Kawhi Leonard is healthy, one thing remains true:
He’s the difference between a team that hopes… and one that believes.
