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And speaking of progression.... his beard is progressing quite well.
I know some people might be disappointed with his apparent lack of production...but when you look past the raw numbers, you can tell he's having a much better season this year:
His 2012-2013 averages: 11.9 ppg (59.2 TS%), 6 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.7 spg, .6 bpg, 16.4 USG%, and a 16.4 PER while playing 31.2 mpg
His averages this year: 12.2 ppg (60 TS%), 6.3 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.8 spg, 1.3 TO, 18 USG%, and a 18.6 PER playing 28.9 mpg
His averages in 2014: 13 ppg (67.8 TS%), 6.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.7 spg, 1.5 TO playing 29.4 mpg
Offensive Synergy stats: 1.06 ppp overall (31st in the league), 5th in isolation plays, 1st in post-ups, 11th on cuts, 25th in transition plays
Defensive Synergy stats: .77 ppp overall (42nd in the league), 45th in isolation plays, 21st on plays where he guards the PnR ballhandler, 8th in guarding hand-offs
Make no mistake: if Kawhi was getting 32-33 mpg, he'd be putting up the numbers some of you were hoping to see coming into this year. When you look at his raw numbers, it looks like he's basically having an identical season compared to last year. But when you throw in the fact he's putting up slightly better numbers while playing LESS minutes, you can tell he's improved noticeably. Also, his USG% has increased, so he does have a bigger role this year, contrary to some people thinking his role hasn't changed at all.
I'm really excited to see how he performs come playoffs when his minutes increase. I think this playoffs could be his time to really break out.
And speaking of progression.... his beard is progressing quite well.
Why can't he dribble yet
Kawhi is coming along really well. People who expect more have unreasonable expectations. He's young and will continue to get better and better. I'm not disappointed.
I could be wrong, but it feels like he's handling the ball much more this year, especially around the top of the key. His first 2 years I don't think he got the ball at the top as much and mostly was a corner guy.
And his passing looks better this year.
Kawhi's doing great! Better decisions with the ball, less hesitant. More versitile...shoots threes from other spots on the floor besides the corners. Pull up midrange J off the dribble. Going stronger to the rack. He's seems to be getting more comfortable driving the ball and slamming in traffic. Not to mention his disruptive D against the best offensive options on the opposing teams. Very happy with his progress.
I don´t know but since his hand healed he is playing very solid.
That little midrange jumper has been money since he's come back. If he can hit that and the 3 consistently, he is going to be huge for us in the playoffs.
Overall, he's progressing very well but he can still get better. Stronger drives and finishes combined with the kickout and maybe picking up a spin move,
He's already been finishing at a much better rate this year. Last year he shot 65.9% at the rim...this year, he's shooting 71% at the rim, which is great.
damn. Never would have guessed
For what he's being asked to do, he's exceeding expectations.
With the way he's been playing and how that guy in Indiana has fallen off since his hot start (40% shooting in 2014), it doesn't make us look that stupid for trading away Paul George
Not to mention how silly Melo made him look last night.
deff looks sharper this season, esp since his hand healed
He's definitely been more involved this year, especially since coming back.
hope he's a Spur for life, or as long as possible. Guy has added so much variety and life to the team since joining.
This week Leonard said to Jabari Young how he wants to improve his game.
About his scoring/offensive gameLeonard said Spurs assistant coaches Chip Engelland and Chad Forcier work with him as he continues to develop that fadeaway jumper. He works on his spacing, trying to create room from his defender.
According to NBA.com/Stats, Leonard is shooting 3 of 5 (60 percent) on turnaround fadeaways this season, 4 of 7 on fadeaway jumpers (57.1) and 5 of 6 (83.3) on turnaround jump shots.
“It’s getting more natural to me and I’m feeling a rhythm off it,” Leonard said. “Once I start getting more isolation, I’m going to get about two or three moves that I can really knock down; and for that move, it’s pretty natural for me to shoot.”
“It’s just the way the offense is set up,” he said. “It’s not like he’s (Popovich) calling my play and I’m going out there just passing up the ball. It’s just, I got to see the opportunities that I do get and just see how the game plays. If it was my team, I wouldn’t just stop shooting.
Full article Here
I don't know, he doesn't really seem all that much better to me. Slightly, but not by a lot. Then I look at the stats and well that pretty much backs it up. His statisical increases are very tiny except for FG% which is now at a very respectable level. The rest is about the same. . .so it's as if he's already pretty much peaked and all he can do is slightly improve by 5-10% now.
I don't think we're going to see any sharp increases in any area tbh. I don't believe he's capable of increasing his PPG much without dropping his shooting efficiency noticably either.
I'm happy with him and him being a 15th pick and all, but anyone who thinks he's going to be an all star is kinda fooling themselves. He's a starter, but not an all star and probably never will be unless he has a fluke first half once or twice in the future.
The only reason you're not seeing "sharp increases" is because he's playing less. And once Duncan/Ginobili leave, he will have a much bigger role in the offense and will be playing more minutes. Sure, he might see a slight drop in efficiency, but there's no reason to believe he'll start being some inefficient chucker. He's increased his volume of scoring per 36 minutes every year, and guess what? His efficiency has increased as well.
I'm not saying he's going to be some 25+ ppg scoring monster...I don't think that's in his build. But the idea of him being able to drop 18/7/2/2 on efficient shooting is not crazy, and that would definitely make him an all-star caliber player given his elite defense.
I don't think there's any reason to say he's peaked. He's just not in a situation right now where he can easily break out and put up crazy numbers. For one, the Spurs are trying to make sure his knee is healthy going into playoffs, and two, he's the 4th option behind Parker/Duncan/Ginobili. But he won't always be a 4th option. If he can score 13-14 ppg super efficiently as a 4th option, why is it foolish to think he could score 18ish ppg as a legitimate 2nd option?
I mean, 60+ TS% is elite efficiency. Even if he scored 17-18 ppg on 57-58 TS%, that'd be a great level of scoring.
Really annoying to see a 22 year old being played 29mpg
Leonard has all the tools to be an all-star and the game to be an All-Star
just needs to work on his handling and increase his usage and he can already be one tbh...
Pop is not used to having stud players that are young. If you asked him Leonard's age he would probably say 32.
needs to improve ball handling and keep shooting
He needs to get a new hair style, then I will look to him as a allstar.
What's wrong with his hair?
I'm kidding, but you don't see a lot of player wearing the corn rows these days
Last edited by Ditty; 03-21-2014 at 01:03 AM.
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