Gilbert Arenas, Rashad McCants, and Brandon Jennings got into a heated debate about whose better between Kawhi Leonard and Andre Iguodala. McCants got the debate going with a passionate endorsement for Iguodala.
(Starts at 1:40:50)
“Andre Iguodala is better than Kawhi Leonard to me. Young Iggy, we talking championships, we talking two-way defender, being able to hit jump shots, a middle, and being way more athletic, guarding way more twos, hitting game-winners. I want Iguodala.”
Arenas then dismissed Kawhi’s achievements, especially dissing his 2014 Finals MVP being a result of the media not wanting to give it to Tony Parker or Manu Ginobili. Brandon Jennings holds strong for Kawhi throughout, ultimately making Arenas say that it is hard to compare the two due to the different situations they have been in.
I think Jennings did have the right side of this argument, as prime Kawhi Leonard is among the most complete players we have ever seen in basketball. The way people were talking about him after the 2019 Finals has already been forgotten due to recent seasons of injury, but at no point was Iguodala nearly as highly regarded as Kawhi.
Andre Iguodala And Kawhi Leonard Career Comparison
If we put their careers side-by-side, a clearer picture starts to emerge. Iguodala is much older than Kawhi, so it isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison.
After being drafted into the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2004, Iguodala would soon be labeled Allen Iverson’s successor. Unfortunately, that never ended up materializing as Iguodala in a first-option role led the 76ers till only the second round, that too in his final season. He truly found his niche as an incredibly elite rotational piece, as he proved with the Warriors during his time with the franchise. Even though his role diminished with each championship, nobody can take away the 2015 Finals MVP from him. He retired this offseason after 19 years in the NBA.
Iguodala averaged 11.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.4 steals for his career on 46.3% shooting from the field and 33.0% from the three.
Kawhi Leonard didn’t come into the league in 2011 as highly regarded as Iggy did in 2004, but he quickly made an impact. He earned rotational minutes on a contending Spurs side due to his innate defensive ability. Kawhi guarded LeBron James in both the 2013 and 2014 Finals, being named Finals MVP in 2014 after the Spurs won. After that, he quickly moved into being a primary option for the Spurs and made them a regular contender in the West. Unfortunately, injuries have hampered his career for over half a decade, though he did snag another title and Finals MVP for his incredible run with the 2019 Raptors.
Leonard has averaged 19.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.7 steals on 49.5% shooting from the field and 38.7% from three throughout his 12-year NBA career.
Let’s compare Iguodala and Leonard’s achievements through their NBA careers:
Andre Iguodala: 4x NBA Champion, 1x Finals MVP, 1x All-Star, 2x All-Defensive Team
Kawhi Leonard: 2x NBA Champion, 2x Finals MVP, 5x All-Star, 5x All-NBA, 7x All-Defense, 2x Defensive Player of the Year
In my opinion, I would take Kawhi over Iguodala fairly easily. Not only did Kawhi prove his incredibly high value as a role-player in his early years on the Spurs, as Iguodala did in his later years with the Warriors, Kawhi’s peak was much higher than Iguodala. Defensively, it isn’t even a comparison with many, considering Kawhi one of the greatest perimeter defenders in the NBA.
Pure shot-making ability might edge Iguodala technically, but Kawhi is an absolute menace when he pulls up. Leonard has been one of the most efficient mid-range shooters of this era and is one of the best at converting open threes. Iguodala may have had more variety with his dribble package and ability to drive to the basket, but Leonard’s accurate shooting also plays into our decision.
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