Kawhi Leonard is having a terrific season this year, leading his Los Angeles Clippers to compete in the stacked Western Conference, being one game away from playing in the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history. After winning his second NBA championship with the Toronto Raptors last year, Kawhi picked things right where he left them and now is trying to do the same with the Clippers, one of the best teams in the league.
Even though his sidekick Paul George hasn’t had a good postseason, Leonard has been the face of his team, taking care of rivals and leading the Clippers to be right where they are. His development has been terrific; he went from being known as a great defender to be one of the best two-way players in NBA history and the Clips can’t be happier about it. Now things are different for Kawhi than when he started his career with the San Antonio Spurs, becoming even better on the offense than defense.
Head coach Doc Rivers tried to describe Kawhi’s method, why he is the star he is right now and what drives him to become better every day. Rivers explained that Leonard has his own ways and he sticks to them and knows how and where to get better.
“‘Surgical,’ is a good word,” Doc Rivers said. “‘Robotic’ is not a good word. He has a system to what he’s doing. He has a belief in what he’s doing. He sticks to it. I mean, his ability to work and get what he needs to get in and know when he’s there is amazing. It’s rare that you find a guy that just knows his game and knows what he needs to work on.
“It’s awesome some nights when you see him shooting. I think you can tell he’s way over his number, but in his mind he’s not to the comfort level that he needs to be in. When you watch guys through their career shoot and they’re having a tough night and they stop, he’s not going to. It just tells you about who he is.”
Doc Rivers on Kawhi Leonard's method – "Surgical is a good word. Robotic is not a good word. He has a system to what he's doing. He has a belief in what he's doing and he sticks to it… It's rare that you find a guy that knows his game and knows what he needs to work on." pic.twitter.com/0t9jPoARsj
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) September 10, 2020
The 2x NBA champion is playing great ball this postseason. He has taken the Clippers to the West semis and tonight he has a big chance to finish the job and take the team to the WCF for the first time ever. The Klaw is a quiet killer, he lets all the game do the talking and we can’t wait to see what he’s bringing tonight against the Nuggets and the rest of the playoffs. As soon as he landed in Los Angeles, the Clippers became favorites to win the title and now he’s proving why.
