Kawhi Leonard’s injury-prone history seems to have cast a major cloud over his NBA legacy. The two-time NBA champion and two-time Finals MVP does not get the respect he deserves. Even his colleague James Harden did not name him in the starting five of his all-time teammates.
Therefore, it is not surprising that NBA2K seems to have forgotten how good Kawhi Leonard is from the mid-range. In the latest reportedly official ratings released for the upcoming NBA 2K26 launch in September, Kawhi Leonard seems to have fallen out of the Top 10 in mid-range shooting ratings.
The top 10 players, as per the report, are:
1. Nikola Jokic – 98
2. Kyrie Irving- 98
3. Kevin Durant- 97
4. Devin Booker- 97
5. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – 97
6. Andrew Nembhard – 97
7. Stephen Curry – 97
8. DeMar DeRozan – 96
9. Miles McBride – 96
10. Khris Middleton – 96
This did not sit well with NBA fans, especially the Clippers’ loyals, who believe that 2K has often shown tendencies of being biased or baseless at times. Even the Clippers’ official social media account laughed these ratings off as fans called them out for not giving Kawhi Leonard his flowers.
“2K is a notorious Clippers hater and Lakers lover. They can’t deny the results, though.”
“2K is disrespecting so bad.”
“We don’t even take them seriously.”
“Real, cos the list is actually a joke.”
“I knew somebody was missing cause why tf miles mcbride up there.”
“Shai should have the top middy rank, but truly, no Kawhi is insanity.”
“Talk that shid @NBA2K a joke for real. Best mid-range shooter is Kawhi f..n Leonard”
This is not the first time they have snubbed Leonard. In NBA 2K21, Giannis Antetokounmpo (84) was rated higher than Kawhi Leonard (81) despite his mid-range efficiency being much lower than Leonard’s. Before 2020, Antetokounmpo’s midrange percentages ranged from 36-38% of the shots made, while Leonard’s ranged from 40-47%.
Even now, Leonard shot 53.7% from mid-range in 2024-25, which is definitely better than the likes of Miles McBride, who reportedly made only 37.1% of his shots from mid-range in the same time. Therefore, it seems that Leonard’s time on the bench in a season is factoring into evaluating how good he is and how valuable he is to the Clippers.
Leonard ended up missing 45 games in the regular season due to issues with his right knee. He averaged 21.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in the 37 games he played in the regular season. Maybe his long-term absence is the reason he has fallen off the active list as per NBA 2K26, but we certainly believe that Kawhi Leonard is one of the greatest mid-range shooters of all time, and he deserves to be above McBride on this list.
