Kawhi Leonard reminded us all again that he’s one of the best playoff performers in the league, leading the Los Angeles Clippers during a must-win game with 45 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 5 three-pointers.
“I definitely didn’t want to go home,” Leonard said on SportsCenter, as quoted by All Clippers. “We have to do whatever it takes to get a win if we don’t want to go home. It’s on us.”
Leonard was aggressive and attacked at all time, and said after the game that he doesn’t really care about who’s guarding him, he’ll keep the same mindset:
“I want to attack everybody on the floor, no matter who is in front of me. No matter what the matchup is,” Leonard added.
"I want to attack everybody on the floor, no matter who is in front of me. No matter what the matchup is."
– Kawhi Leonard 😯
(h/t @Farbod_E ) pic.twitter.com/OUWtl3gEso
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 5, 2021
But more than his contributions on the offensive end, Leonard was also in charge of guarding Luka Doncic for most of the game, forcing him off the ball and making him uncomfortable:
“I’m trying to just give him no easy looks. That’s all you can do with him. … He’s a hell of a player,” Leonard said, as quoted by Callie Caplan.
Kawhi Leonard on ESPN on defending Luka Doncic (29 points on 11-24 FG, 2-9 3FG): "I'm trying to just give him no easy looks. That's all you can do with him. … He's a hell of a player."
— Callie Caplan (@CallieCaplan) June 5, 2021
Doncic still finished the night with 29 points but was off during several of his attempts, Kawhi clearly did a better job of keeping him in ‘normal’ figures than the rest of his teammates so we wouldn’t be surprised if Tyronn Lue gives him that duty again in Game 7.
Thus far, all games have been won by the visitors, and that’s not a trend the Clippers are comfortable with right now.
This series has been as excited and unpredictable as expected, but there aren’t many things the Mavs can do when Kawhi gets into the zone, so hopefully, he’ll bring his A-game again on Sunday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvV-s9PBcRA
