Clippings: Doc Rivers expects Kawhi Leonard, Paul George to come back in top condition

Surely Doc Rivers would rather be gearing up for the NBA playoffs, but with his LA Clippers in a holding pattern along with the rest of the world due to the coronavirus pandemic, he’s choosing to make lemonade of the situation.

Namely, Rivers is excited to see his Clippers stars get in top shape.

“I know Kawhi’s overworking. I can guarantee you that,” Rivers joked on a conference call, as reported by ESPN Wednesday. “And the difference is, during the summer, Kawhi couldn’t work, you know, so now he’s got this break, and he’s able to train.”

”The Kawhi we’ll see will be in phenomenal shape. PG is another guy that’s gonna be in phenomenal shape.”

Leonard has played in 51 of LA’s 64 games during the regular season, and the Clippers knew they would need to manage their new superstar’s minutes early in the campaign. But on the bright side, with an unforeseen total stoppage of NBA games, the attendant travel and other obligations, Leonard can both rest and apparently get in even better shape than we’ve seen in a Clippers uniform.

Otherwise, Rivers appears to have been reading to his grandkids on zoom lately.

“If it means we get to play and continue our pursuit for the goal that we want, I feel like Dr. Seuss: ‘I will play anywhere. I will play in a house. I will play in a mouse,’” Rivers said. “I think that’s how our team feels. We don’t care where, when, why, what. We just want to go after our goal. I’m speaking by myself on that.”

Now, more news for Thursday:

• Ballmer richest team owner in world: Forbes has a list of the 20 richest sports team owners, and while we can likely quibble at the specific numbers, of note to this site is that Clippers owner Steve Ballmer is by far the richest team owner in the world, his $52.7 billion net worth ranking him the 11th richest person and a solid $15 billion more than the next closest team owner.
• Paul Scheer talks Clippers fandom: Comedian Paul Scheer went on Zach Lowe’s podcast and spoke extensively about the Clippers and his fandom, among many other topics. You can tell Scheer is a real fan, he knows his stuff. This is a good listen.
• Clippers remain atop ESPN rankings: The Clippers are still No. 1 in ESPN’s future power rankings, but the Lakers made a big jump and are making a charge at the Clips. Still, plenty of optimism for the Clippers overall! Now let’s just get the games back.
• Tatum ranks Kawhi third: Rising star Jayson Tatum considers Kawhi Leonard the third-best player in the NBA right now, per Bleacher Report.
• Inside Drake’s mega-mansion: The not-so-scrappy rapper has a ridiculously ornate mansion. SB Nation evaluates his custom full court, his dramatic hall of jerseys and his two-story(!) closet.

Today’s question: If you were to make a house, money is no object, what is your must-have custom room? Mine would be a room with six or seven TVs mounted on the wall so I can watch a bunch of games like at a sports bar but in my own home. Let’s chat our choices in the comments below!