For Zion Williamson, Kawhi Leonard, Jamal Murray and more, the wait is finally over

Kawhi Leonard was at the Los Angeles Clippers facility on Monday. This wasn’t exactly a surprising development.

The message was his clothes. He was wearing a basketball uniform. Finally.

Welcome back Kawhi. You too, Jamal Murray from Denver, Ben Simmons from Brooklyn, Zion Williamson from New Orleans, John Wall from the Clippers and many others in the NBA.

The opening of training camps centered around the NBA — most teams begin training Tuesday — marks the long-awaited return to work for some of the league’s biggest names, who were unable to play last season due to injuries or other issues.

“I’m blessed to be healthy, blessed to walk up those stairs and not think about it,” said Murray, the Nuggets’ top-flight guard, who tore his left cruciate ligament in April 2021. “I’ve come a long way.”

He’s not alone.

Leonard tore his right ACL during a playoff game with the Clippers in June 2021. Williamson missed all of last season while struggling with a foot injury and other setbacks. Wall didn’t play for Houston last season — he wasn’t in the Rockets’ recovery plans — and recently revealed years of battling injuries were also taking a toll on his mental health. The same goes for Simmons, who didn’t play for Philadelphia or Brooklyn last year after making his trade there while dealing with his own mental health issues.

But here they are, eager for a new season. Leonard, a two-time NBA Finals MVP, said he will attend training camp and hopes to make it through the regular season unhindered.

“I’ve been trying to improve and focus on my whole body for 14 months,” Leonard said. “Yes, I’m excited. I’m tired of doing these rehab workouts and mostly listening to doctors and trainers – although I still have to keep going.

Williamson – an absolute force when healthy – said he feels great, moves faster and jumps higher. Physically he is in top form again.

“I’ve never dealt with a[sacking]like that,” said Williamson, who has not seen NBA action since May 4, 2021. “That’s a long time without playing a game. But my excitement is through the roof. I’m just ready to get back on the pitch.”

Leonard, Wall, Williamson and Murray were all among the players listed as inactive in all of their side’s 82 games last season. It was even more for Golden State’s James Wiseman, who had a knee injury — 82 in the regular season, 22 more in the playoffs. The Warriors had 104 games on their way to the NBA championship.

He, too, sought psychological help to overcome his inability to play.

“It’s been a tough time for me, especially with this injury because I love basketball so much,” Wiseman said. “I just want to be out there with my team. When I wasn’t out there, it was very difficult for me, but I just persevered. I have that resilience just to keep going. It’s in my DNA and I will never give up no matter how difficult the situation.”

Simmons dealt with a disastrous playoff performance with Philadelphia in 2021, who then proceeded from a popular belief that he didn’t want to play last season. He said he’s in a better place mentally and will finally play with the Nets again.

“Everyone has dark days,” Simmons said. “You’re able to take it on and work towards getting to a place where you need to be. This is where I am. For me, I work on myself every day.”

He agreed to go. For others, the wait continues.

TJ Warren — then from Indiana, now from Brooklyn — and Jonathan Isaac from Orlando were both newsmakers in the restart bubble in 2020. Warren scored 53 points in his bubble debut this season, had three other games where he scored at least 32, but has played in exactly four games since then, the last of which was on December 29, 2020.

“I’m healed,” Warren said, “but not cleared.”

Isaac is in a similar situation. He injured his left knee during a game in Washington on January 1, 2020. He returned and played two games in the bladder seven months later, blew out his left cruciate ligament on the second of those appearances, suffered further setbacks during his recovery and has not played since. Of Orlando’s last 198 games, Isaac has appeared in exactly two, and he’s not ready for 5-on-5 just yet.

Relying on his faith, Isaac says it got him through the dark moments of rehab on Monday. Isaac, meanwhile, has also written a book about his beliefs and his decision to stand in the bubble for the national anthem as a sign of peaceful protest.

“I know I should play basketball for a reason,” Isaac said. “With every step I take, I see the light at the end of the tunnel getting bigger and bigger. I know I will play this season. It’s just a matter of timing.”