Timmy effects the defense more than Kawhi. Kawhi is good, but big men are just more important than perimeter defenders. You stick Dwight on any team and the overall team defense gets better. You stick Kawhi on any team, and that may not be the case. That being said Kawhi is one hell of a defender.
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Something that I was thinking about earlier. If Harrison Barnes were drafted by the Spurs, would he be every bit as good as Leonard is right now? I think so.
Stacey King should no longer have a vote. That is embarrassing. And OMG if we had Kawhi instead of picking Marcus Morris. Maybe Chandler doesn't develop. Maybe Kawhi doesn't develop, but if they both would have we could be soooo clearly the best team right now.
This. The guy gets a ton of credit for "not getting credit". He's a good ball player, but the media seems ready to put him in the Hall of Fame. Scores 32 in a game & everybody goes nuts, a guy like Klay Thompson scores 37 in a QUARTER and no one even brings it up. Until this year Leonard has played on a better squad but media doesn't go on & on about Klay (who's a damn good defender himself & better offensively than Kawhi) because he doesn't play for the Champs. All that said, I hope our Rockets keep them from meeting in the Western Conference Finals.
If you could choose to build around Kawhi or Klay Thompson, you go with Kawhi each and every time. You just can't get to the level that Kawhi is defensively very often. Klay is a good defender but he's nothing like Kawhi. However, Klay's best asset, his shooting, is not that rare at all. There are lots of great shooters in the NBA. You say Kawhi is a product of the Spurs system but then go onto say that Klay somehow deserves more praise. Klay is a good defender. Klay is an elite, elite shooter. But he too his a product of playing in the Golden State system. He is the ideal #2 to Curry because of his ability to play off the ball to Curry's creativity. But he isn't a creator, and couldn't carry a team by himself.
When has Leonard ever carried the Spurs "by himself"? The Spurs are littered with 3 future Hall of Fame players & head coach. Plus we obviously disagree with Klay's ability to get his own offense.
He was responding to someone who was downplaying Klay's abilities because he's never carried a team by himself. Kawhi has also never carried a team by himself. He is the Spurs most important player now, but still not even close to carrying a team by himself. That doesn't mean anything... it's a stupid comment, because, especially these days, and ESPECIALLY in the West, no one every carries a team by themselves. Lebron and Hakeem are the closest to have every done it in the last 25 years... but that (i) downplays how bad the East was in the Cavs first run with Lebron, and (ii) downplays the quality of the talent surrounding Hakeem in their first championship. In either case... in a pick a player to build a team around environment, I don't think Kawhi and Leonard are "that" far apart. CLEARLY you pick Kawhi first, but it's not as huge a difference as some would make it out. For one, as good as Klay is and has become, he'd be crazy crazy good on that Spurs squad. And the Spurs would STILL have REALLY REALLY good defense. For two, someone said there's lots of good shooters in the NBA. Well, there are some. Klay is a GREAT shooter. 4th in 3 point % while being 5th in attempts. High % at high volume. The only one better at that combo in the league is Curry. Klay shot almost 100 more three's than Korver, for example. For three, he is an underrated defender. I saw him play extremely good defense on CP3 in last year's playoffs. He understands team defense really well. Yes, Draymond's versatility combined with Bogut protecting the paint and Iguodala as a stopper off the bench are also very important to that Warriors team d, but Klay is also a solid solid defender. The only thing that catapults Kawhi over Klay is the last 3 months of basketball. And that's meaningful for sure. Kawhi has come into his own offensively. And if he's going to continue to play offense like this, then heck ya, he's a top 5 player in the league. His offensive efficiency this series has been amazing to say the least. But the Clippers are not a great defensive team. And where they are bad is in the exact position where Kawhi is - SG/SF. Kawhi is too big, too athletic for the Reddick, Barnes, whomever off the bench the Clippers have to throw at him. It's not like the Rockets are great defensively at the moment, either. And of course, Kawhi is playing great... so even against the Rockets or the Warriors (if they make it that far), Kawhi should still play really really well. I'm not ready to crown him just yet. Kawhi is the Spurs most important player right now. But, if asked why the Spurs are 2-2 in this series, and not down 3-1, it's Old Man Riverwalk. In a strange way that credits Kawhi... because I'm kind of expecting him to do what he does, whereas with Duncan you are just amazed at what he's doing at 39. I'm not a Kawhi hater. I am jealous of the Spurs, sure. But in many ways, Kawhi is a refreshing NBA player. Really really focused, humble, has truly worked himself into a great offensive player and understands and focuses on the defensive side of the ball. More of him in the NBA is a good thing. His attitude is WAY WAY WAY less annoying than the splash brothers, who have very irritating personas. I'm just not quite ready to bet on Kawhi yet. That's probably my mistake. He's way ahead offensively of where frankly I ever thought he would get.
