Concern about Kawhi's knees this season

[Baam]

Theese was the guy who nailed it.

That's not what the OP is saying tho, he's saying that he has gotten worse, he went from dunking on Ibaka as a rookie to getting rejected twice in the same game in Toronto and has missed several months in between due to knee issues and has been said to play hurt almost as long...

[HarlemHeat37]

The only aspect of Leonard's game that has regressed is his 3-point shooting, everything else is virtually identical to last season or better, tbh..

He has actually slightly improved on everything else, tbh:

- Shooting a better % inside the paint
- Creating 7% more offense for himself than last year
- Slightly improved rebounding
- Better shooting on the mid-range jump shot
- Higher efficiency in created shots in the half-court
- More self-created fast break points

The only aspect of his game that has regressed is his 3-point shooting, which hurts him when playing with Parker, since Tony is a high-usage player that relies heavily on penetrating and kicking off the pick&roll with the big..

His defense isn't any different in ability, but Pop has assigned him to smaller guards more often this season to mask Belinelli's lack of defense, and defending guards isn't Leonard's speciality, he actually struggles to defend those types of players, unlike Green..

[Spursfanfromafar]

The only aspect of Leonard's game that has regressed is his 3-point shooting, everything else is virtually identical to last season or better, tbh..

He has actually slightly improved on everything else, tbh:

- Shooting a better % inside the paint
- Creating 7% more offense for himself than last year
- Slightly improved rebounding
- Better shooting on the mid-range jump shot
- Higher efficiency in created shots in the half-court
- More self-created fast break points

The only aspect of his game that has regressed is his 3-point shooting, which hurts him when playing with Parker, since Tony is a high-usage player that relies heavily on penetrating and kicking off the pick&roll with the big..

Indeed, but even with 3 pt%, he started off as very slow and has gradually improved over the season.

Month, Made, Att, %
November,8,40 - 0.200
December, 13,36 - 0.361
January, 10,23 - 0.435
Overall, 33,101 -0.327

[Knoxxx]

That's not what the OP is saying tho, he's saying that he has gotten worse, he went from dunking on Ibaka as a rookie to getting rejected twice in the same game in Toronto and has missed several months in between due to knee issues and has been said to play hurt almost as long...

Ibaka is a beast, it takes a bit of luck for anyone to dunk on him. Who knows how bad KL knees really are, but clearly a guy we need to manage minutes and keep healthy for the playoffs like the Big 3.

Point is he is really not a high flyer, so similar to Duncan we can hope any knee issues are manageable and don't detract from a highly productive career. Duncan against Clippers age 37 was a sight to behold, he looked very limber, quick, and displayed 1000% higher B-Ball IQ than DeAndre Jordan while abusing him. KL is more like the swingman version of TD to me, not the high flying monster dunking low BB IQ type that fans love to see get 4 dunks for a grand total of 8 points in a game. To average fan, a dunk is worth 10 points and they can have that fools' gold!

[sehui]

Ibaka is a beast, it takes a bit of luck for anyone to dunk on him. Who knows how bad KL knees really are, but clearly a guy we need to manage minutes and keep healthy for the playoffs like the Big 3.

Point is he is really not a high flyer, so similar to Duncan we can hope any knee issues are manageable and don't detract from a highly productive career. Duncan against Clippers age 37 was a sight to behold, he looked very limber, quick, and displayed 1000% higher B-Ball IQ than DeAndre Jordan while abusing him. KL is more like the swingman version of TD to me, not the high flying monster dunking low BB IQ type that fans love to see get 4 dunks for a grand total of 8 points in a game. To average fan, a dunk is worth 10 points and they can have that fools' gold!

Yeah I'm sure Kawhi has improved fundamentally as a NBA player, but his athletcism seemed to be weaker this season. Which like I mentioned earlier ,is kind of strange seeing how young he is, and it's not like he's playing 40+ minutes either. I just think it's weird we are managing minutes for Kawhi when pretty much every single other young stud in the NBA who has even more responsibility than Kawhi is balling like 40+ min a night with no issue.

[Man In Black]

THERE SHOULD BE NO CONCERN ABOUT HIS KNEES.

Bio-mechanically speaking, there is nothing wrong with his knees. He jumps as high as he always has. He wasn't a Gerald Green Leaper when he came in and isn't expected to be. His long ass arms give him the ability to get high from the waist up.

Just analyze his GAIT(the way he walks, runs, and jumps) There is no misstep, no short hop, or any of the things that we should see if there were knee issues. If he had one, he'd be favoring the knee and a good eye could tell. My experienced good eye says there is nothing wrong with his knee.

[superjames1992]

People only say Kawhi's has regressed because they had erotic unrealistic expectations for him this year. He's playing about as I expected and I've been pleased.

[wildchild]

Kawhi gets up more shots this year than last year, and has led the team in shot attempts a couple games. So...ya.

Kawhi knows his role, and is we'll aware that he's not gonna get that many touches when he's playing with TP, and Timmy. Why would he become the focal point of the offense? He knows thus, and is content with it. People are grasping at straws itt.

Leonard is the 4th option when on the floor based on usage porcentage, he averages 385 touches, 6th on the Spurs.

I wouldn't say that Kawhi is precisely an emotional guy who wears his emotions on his sleeves, so who knows if he is content with his role. I just repeat that he said to the media.
In off-season he told reporters he was ready for breakout season, aims to be an All Star, once the season has started, he says he has the same role as last year

His defense isn't any different in ability, but Pop has assigned him to smaller guards more often this season to mask Belinelli's lack of defense, and defending guards isn't Leonard's speciality, he actually struggles to defend those types of players, unlike Green..

For example, Harden is a nightmare match-up for him. Green on Harden and Leonard on Parsons sounds more appropriate for their defensive skills.

[313]

his beta mindset worries me more then his knees tbh...

[sananspursfan21]

This is all so prophetic

[SAGirl]

Hmmm bad knees since very young... He might have an expiration date that came in sooner than expected...

[K...]

We cut ties with dejuan when it was clear his career was over.... Albiet he had a much more severe issues and wasn't a central player


But, it's a precedent that the Spurs will put a price on a medically comprised player