I've seen Kawhi Leonard play a lot of games in his two seasons at San Diego State. I have a subscription to The Mountain West channel; have watched SDSU play in person or on television probably twenty times the past two years. I may have a little better basis than most when it comes to making an assessment of his potential. Here are my general observations of his game and my opinion of how he'll impact the Spurs:
I was actually a little surprised initially to see how highly Kawhi was being rated by Chad Ford and some other draft analysts. I thought 5 to 7 was too high. The only reason I say that is that Kawhi was pretty limited offensively in college. His college scoring was due in large part to his genetics and his hustle. Kawhi's form on his shot was something I doubted could be translated consistently to an NBA game. Watching him during the college season, though, I still figured he'd be a late first round pick because he’s definitely one of those guys with NBA level talent. But when I saw how limited this year’s draft talent was, I realized a guy with Leonard’s potential was certainly lottery level compared to the compe ion. There’s no doubt he’ll contribute. He’s not a project-type player that the Spurs will have to stash away. He’ll come in and produce at a high level his rookie year.
When I saw Kawhi fall to the Pacers I had flashbacks to their drafting Danny Granger a few years ago. I know the Pacers scout the west a little better than some NBA teams, and I figured they recognized Leonard’s potential, similar to how they understood that Granger would be an impact player in this league. He and Danny have completely different skill sets, so you can’t compare the two, but I thought what the Pacers had done was pull off another draft day steal. When I saw that they actually had traded that pick to San Antonio I was pretty excited for my Spurs.
Kawhi Leonard could be the best rebounding 3 in the league if given the minutes. And he’s definitely quick enough and long enough to guard any 3, and a lot of the 4s in the NBA. His body is too slight, I think, to man the post against the beefier 4s out there, but no one will out-length him which is a nice change for this team. What Kawhi brings to the table is tremendous hustle. He’s amazingly athletic, and so I was shocked at his poor combine stats – a fluke is all I can surmise. He’s going to bring back a defensive intensity to this team not seen since the days of Bowen. I’m not sure he’ll ever have Bowen’s ability to guard 4 different positions, but if he can guard all of the small forwards that have been murdering the Spurs the last few years that may be enough. I think we’ll see him guard most of the better 2s, 3s and some of the better scoring 4s, that this team faces.
As for the shooting weaknesses, I know he’s been working hard on his shot mechanics. He’s completely changed his release point, his shooting motion, and the way he holds the basketball. Give him some time with Chip and I think we’ll see a guy capable of doing a reasonable job shooting the rock. I wouldn’t expect him to be a double figure scorer this season, but if Pop will trust the rookie, I could see him seriously displacing many of RJ's minutes next season. At this point he doesn’t have the ability to create his own shot, but that may come with time.
Kawhi’s greatest asset is his work ethic. He’s going to inject a certain energy level onto the defense that I think will be contagious. What he’ll have to work on is his shooting, his ball-handling, and his lateral movement on defense. But he’s not going to be satisfied with being average. He’s one of those guys that’s a winner, plain and simple. Some people have that gift and bring it to the table. Guys like Bowen, Mario Elie, Gary Neal. Guys who make their team better. I think that’s what the Spurs saw. Some players have that knack and desire, and you can just see it in how they play…losing is personal to them. I’d expect Kawhi Leonard to live in the workout facility, he’ll work to eliminate his weaknesses, and he’ll be a much better-rounded player in the NBA than he ever was in college. People will need to remember that he’s not even 21, and so he’ll need a little time, but fans will also be pleasantly surprised by his learning curve I think. He’ll probably average 4 and 3 his first couple of months in the league, the doubters and George Hill lovers will be screaming about him being a wasted pick, but then you’ll see him start to click. I don’t think I’d expect him to be a double-figure scorer as a rookie, but he’ll definitely contribute, and I think we’ll see him getting starter minutes by the playoffs. He’ll be our team’s primary defensive specialist by season’s end.
The Spurs have finally found their long 3.
Reply With Quote
Posting Permissions
