I turned on the TV this morning and they where debating if he is better then Lebron. Players i would take over Leonard Harden Durant Curry Lebron Westbrook Giannis AD Draymon
So the talking heads overreacted to a great performance in a nationally televised game? Weird. He is, as LCAhmed said, a top 5 player though.
he's a great player (both ends) but he gets away with a ton. he constantly travels and he almost always extends his arm/elbow on drives and stop and pops. he's never whistled for it.
People on here would take Westbrook, Giannis, Draymond, AD, and PG over Leonard? Wtf? looks like Leonard is underrated to me
Why? Kawhi is better than him at pretty much everything. Kawhi is an MVP level player, George is just an all star
I would only take Lebron over Kawhi if I wanted to build a championship team. For now. (until Lebron gets too old). I would take him over Durant because Kawhi is younger healthier/durable and much cheaper. Same for AD because of all his injuries. Kawhi is the second best two way player in the league. Players like Harden, Westbrook , Curry aren't and that matters. (to me at least?). But also one of the most important factors is that kawhi has been constantly improving parts of his game. Who knows, I wouldn't count it out that he won't improve his playmaking next year. Anyway, no matter if you disagree with that, Kawhi is a top 5 player in the league.
People have been overrating him for years, but this year I actually agree that he is a top 5 player. His offense took a huge leap forward this year.
leonard is easily a top 5 player in the league today. There's nothing really overrated about that. That's what he is
I definitely think he's a top 5 player, but let's hold off on anointing him this high yet. His defense is fantastic, but honestly just from watching a LOT of the Spurs and Warriors (and Rockets)... he doesn't have the same defensive impact overall as Draymond. Draymond truly guards 5 positions about as well as I've ever seen anyone do that. Now of course Kawhi is a better offensive player than Draymond, just pointing the defensive difference out. I've seen Kawhi get isolated out of a game defensively, or just have not as impactful defensive nights. Draymond makes a clear and obvious defensive impact every second he's on the floor. I think there's a difference value wise, there, defensively. Moreover, as plenty have noted, its fair to still note he's much more a scorer than an all around offensive player. The most impressive thing about his scoring is his shot. It's beautiful, and he's become very efficient as a pure scorer. He's not much of a creator, though he has improved. He's not the ballhandler that Steph, Westbrook, Harden, Kyrie, etc. are, but he is much improved there, too. And he realizes that he's a freight train body wise and uses that to his advantage, like Lebron does. But the point being, offensively, he has yet to prove to me that he is as versatile and great an overall offensive player as some of the other top offensive greats. To be clear... he MAY get there. The guy sets his sights on something, trains for it, and then does it. If he was challenged to become a 10+ assist creator in addition to being a great offensive scorer... I think he could get there, just would take a few more seasons of refinement. In today's day and age, I'd certainly take Lebron over him. You have injury arguments, but I'd take Curry over him, and if healthy KD over him. I'd put him on the same level as Harden. And increasingly, I guess I might actually put IT on that same level ... at least for RIGHT NOW... not sure if IT can sustain this peak performance for long. The Parker injury hurts the Spurs, obviously, but I'd say these are two otherwise fairly matched team, talent wise. I mean, in reality, on paper, the Spurs have more talent. Multiple former all stars. Veteran, savvy players. Best coaching/culture in the last 30 years of basketball. But others have argued otherwise. And for all of Kawhi's best two way player in the league stuff... it's a 1-1 series, and if the Rockets come out with the win, why wouldn't you take the defensively limited, but better offensive player Harden over him? In today's NBA an amazingly elite offensive player is the best bet to build around. Notwithstanding the fact that Steph is surrounded by crazy ridiculously good talent, it just seems easier to build a team around Steph with championship potential than around Kawhi. But I'm sure he'll prove me wrong...
Kawhi would be a perfect fit next to Harden. Or Westbrook. Or LeBron. Or any other superstar. He is arguably the best defender in the league and his shooting is elite. His playmaking? Eh. He got several open looks off of passes from his teammates (although he did have more assists than is typical for him). I feel like his ideal fit is next to another playmaking superstar OR in a well designed system. It is very hard to quantify Kawhi. If I have Harden, my next (not LeBron) pick would be Kawhi. However if you have Kawhi who would your next pick be? Harden, Durant, Westbrook, Curry? I would say he is definitely top 5 and I think he could be as high as number 2 due to how well he fits with any other player/system. He is like Curry with elite defense but less dribble ability and a few less all-NBA players around him.
Kawhi's playoff numbers are comparable to peak Jordan right now. He is balling out of his mind. Overrated? Please. The dude is killing it. Edit: to clarify, I'm not saying he's as good as peak Jordan. Just saying that he's been balling out of his mind this postseason.
I dont know about that. If PG was on the Spurs, I think he would be even better than Leonard is right now. PG definitely has more skills and is probably a better shooter too.
Simple test, put Kawhi on the Sixers, do they become contenders? What about Lebron, Curry, Harden, etc.
