If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
His midrange game is pretty good, it's to the point where I'd prefer him to pull up more at times because his athleticism-handles combo isn't great enough to make him an elite slasher through traffic.
And any young player on a bad team with no direction will get exposed. Lillard had a good environment for making RoY because he was playing alongside a bunch of really good teammates, his bench sucked, and as the PG he always has the ball in his hands so he got to score more points (and Yay! Points still pervades the media who vote for the awards). Davis had a better season in other respects (PER, defense, other metrics) but he suffered due to his coach giving him few minutes because of Ryan Anderson, injuries, and not getting the ball a lot because he wasn't named Greivis Vasquez or Eric Gordon.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
This may be the worst post I've seen in 6 months, and you're competing with robdiaz.
I, like many posters think he's got the confidence in driving as he showed in that bulls game where the big 3+jack were out. He had his points from transition, threes, pull ups and drives. But we as fans shouldn't expect him to be a superstar, at least not NOW. Considering that the big 3 are still around, he doesn't need to be a superstar right now. But he DOES need to step up his game, which is what he's actually doing. His numbers don't tell the whole story, but he's doing a lot of things better now than he did last year. For example, remember earlier this season when he would almost always screw up his one man fastbreaks due charging calls? By the end of the year, he wasn't doing that. But then again, that's just my opinion.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
And he has been working on his game. If you can't see the transformation, from last season, to this, I'd schedule a visit with an eye doctor. He needs to get in the weight room and add some upper body strength. Not too much, but some would definitely help his game and confidence. Also, the shots he's getting, are within the flow of the offense. The offense isn't geared around kawhi, although they are starting to look to him more(against favorable matchups). Lastly, lets not forget about his bum knee. It's definitely limiting him and making him play a bit safer, and not taking as many chances..kawhi will be fine..I just hope the knee holds up.
I am worried about his knee for these games I hope it holds up as far as Kawhi as a player I think he is getting better. What I like about this kid is that he want's to get better and is willing to work his butt off to get better so I think next year we will see a more improved version of Kawhi.
Kawhi hasn't been sitting on his laurels. Since last summer, he's been working on shooting, dribble drive, pick and roll offense, being more communicative, etc.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
When you're a young player on a team with Tim Duncan AND Tony Parker AND Manu Ginobili, you keep you trap shut and listen. If there's one thing the Spurs aren't short on, it's leadership. Those three guys have been the center of the most successful team in any professional sport for more than a decade. What could a guy still in his rookie contract add to that?
A lot of people used to say that Tim wasn't a leader, because he wasn't outspoken or a chest-thumper. Those people were wrong. And if you remember Tony in his second year, he sure as wasn't a team leader. A good player, yes - a team leader, no. Kawhi knows who he is, and where he is.
Manu would have been a headliner for just about any team in the league, but he has come off the bench for virtually his whole career. It takes a special player to do that. Kawhi's willingness to focus on wins and be part of a system gives me hope that he is a special player, too. Wait until it's time for him to take on an expanded role before you worry about him expanding his role.
Leonard has displayed aggression and individual skill in many games this season, usually when one or more of the big 3 isn't playing..
He isn't aggressive, because the rest of the team doesn't know how to play around him, which is evident every time he tries to create..when he drives baseline, Duncan or Splitter is usually in his way..when he catches it at the top of the arc, he rarely gets a screen, he's usually just waiting for Parker to curl for the pass..
The offense allows the big 3 to create, and just the big 3..the same issue was present when Richard Jefferson joined the team..
The Spurs don't run isolation plays..they run pick&roll and post-ups..when Pop does run a play for Kawhi, it's usually a post-up..the Spurs offense isn't designed to accommodate a mid-post/baseline players like Leonard, which should be evident to anybody that understand basketball..
Btw, in these playoffs, there are only 3 eligible guys(200+ minutes) that have posted a PER of 18+, TS% of 60%+(a mark of elite efficiency) and a double-digit rebound %..Lebron James, Andre Iguodala(out in the 1st round) and Kawhi Leonard..
On the topic of being more communicative It's not going to be easy if that is not his personality. He's not the type of player that gets into people's faces. Nevertheless, I think with time he will be more outspoken.
If Kawhi was on the Bobcats his flaws would be exposed. I love him but the kid has no confidence in driving/creating or with having the ball in his hands in general. He's shooting wide open 3's and makes athletic plays on O and D but otherwise...ehh. He's got to work on his offensive game. One day he's got to develop a jump shot, and then he needs to learn how to drive and be confident with the ball in his hands.
And the Spurs need to stop praising him for his shyness. Shyness on the court is a bad thing. When the Big 3 are gone, how is Kawhi going to take over the team if he won't talk to anyone on or off the court? I like that he's a good person, but you can still be a good person and communicate too. If Kawhi ever wants to be more than an athletic young role player on a great team, then he's got to work on those things.
His jumper is money, haven't you seen this guy play at all? He's already close to an all star caliber player, he just doesn't get any plays run for him in the system. There is a reason Scott Brooks thinks he's already an all star, and Pop says he's the future of the franchise. Put him on a bad team where plays are actually drawn for him and he'd average 18 & 8 easily.
He has a lot of potential but he does need to improve on ball handling and individual moves but hey he's 21,I just wish he had a personality on the court and showed some emotion but that's just him.
Leonard has displayed aggression and individual skill in many games this season, usually when one or more of the big 3 isn't playing..
He isn't aggressive, because the rest of the team doesn't know how to play around him, which is evident every time he tries to create..when he drives baseline, Duncan or Splitter is usually in his way..when he catches it at the top of the arc, he rarely gets a screen, he's usually just waiting for Parker to curl for the pass..
The offense allows the big 3 to create, and just the big 3..the same issue was present when Richard Jefferson joined the team..
The Spurs don't run isolation plays..they run pick&roll and post-ups..when Pop does run a play for Kawhi, it's usually a post-up..the Spurs offense isn't designed to accommodate a mid-post/baseline players like Leonard, which should be evident to anybody that understand basketball..
Hes definitely shown enough for fans to believe that he has the ability to get to the rim and somewhat be a playmaker. IMO if he didn't have that injury in the rs, he'd be more confident with the moves he's trying to add to his game. Right now we're not seeing them in the POs but he's still playing pretty darn solid regardless
Leonard may not be a superstar yet, but he is close to being star. He's too good to be considered a role player, but he may not quite be a star yet. Leonard is showing incredible patience and maturity right now. He doesn't force things, he plays with his limits, and he learns from the vets. After next year, Duncan, Ginobili, and Pop will retire, and we don't know what will happen with Parker. By then I expect Leonard to have improved his dribbling drastically and to take over and be the superstar leader of the Spurs, along with Green and Joseph as his sidekicks. He'll be the next Duncan, and Joseph and Green will be the nest Parker and Ginobili. I'm not saying that they'll be as good as those three, heck probably not near as good, but they'll play similar roles.
Also, for reference, assisted % on FGs to comparable SFs(Kawhi's is 65%):
MKG: 61%
Luol Deng: 69%
Jimmy Butler: 69%
Klay Thompson: 83%
Harrison Barnes: 63%
Chandler Parsons: 71%
Paul George: 58%
Andrei Kirilenko: 75%
Iman Shumpert: 64%
Tobias Harris: 61%
Nicolas Batum: 72%
Gordon Hayward: 69%
Danilo Gallinari: 63%
Only Paul George creates significantly more shots for himself, and he's had the same progression as Kawhi..shaky ball-handler and inconsistent at efficiently creating for himself..
Among Small Forwards, I'd only take Lebron, Durant, Anthony, George and one more season of Paul Pierce ahead of Leonard..
Last edited by HarlemHeat37; 05-19-2013 at 09:53 PM.
Btw, in these playoffs, there are only 3 eligible guys(200+ minutes) that have posted a PER of 18+, TS% of 60%+(a mark of elite efficiency) and a double-digit rebound %..Lebron James, Andre Iguodala(out in the 1st round) and Kawhi Leonard..
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