The Case for Kawhi Leonard

An NBA player. A legend. Whatever you call him, he is a great player. Kawhi Leonard knows what to do, and how to do it.

Leonard was selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers but was traded that night to the San Antonio Spurs along with the rights to Erazem Lorbek and Davis Bertans in exchange for George Hill.[11] On December 10, 2011, following the conclusion of the NBA lockout, he signed a multi-year deal with the Spurs.
Leonard and teammate Tiago Splitter were selected to play in the 2012 Rising Stars Challenge as members of Team Chuck. Although he suited up for the event, he did not play due to a calf strain. After starter Richard Jefferson was traded to the Golden State Warriors for Stephen Jackson, Leonard was promoted to the starting small forward position while Jackson served as his backup.
At season's end, Leonard placed fourth in Rookie of the Year voting and was named to the 2012 NBA All-Rookie First Team.
"I think he's going to be a star. And as time goes on, he’ll be the face of the Spurs, I think. At both ends of the court, he is really a special player. And what makes me be so confident about him is that he wants it so badly. He wants to be a good player, I mean a great player. He comes early, he stays late, and he's coachable. He's just like a sponge. When you consider he's only had [two years] of college and no training camp yet, you can see that he's going to be something else."
—Gregg Popovich, in 2012, on Leonard.
In the summer of 2012, Leonard was among several NBA up-and-comers chosen to play for the 2012 USA men's basketball Select Team. They trained with the Olympic team which featured Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, and others.

During the offseason, Tim Duncan announced his retirement after 19 years with the Spurs, and thus making Kawhi Leonard the leader of the team. In the Spurs' season opener on October 25, 2016, Leonard recorded a career-high 35 points and five steals in a 129–100 win over the Golden State Warriors.[47] Two days later, he recorded 30 points and five steals in a 102–94 win over the Sacramento Kings,[48] becoming the first player to have 65 points and 10 steals in the first two games of a season since 1979.[49] On December 6, he scored 31 points to help the Spurs improve to 13–0 on the road with a 105–91 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.[50] On January 14, 2017, he set a new career high with 38 points in a 108–105 loss to the Phoenix Suns, becoming the first Spur to record three consecutive 30-point games since Tony Parker in 2012.[51] Leonard's performance registered as his 11th 30-point game of the season, which is the most by a Spurs player through the first 40 games of the season since 1995–96, when David Robinson put together 13 30-point outings.[51] Three days later, he scored 34 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves for his fourth straight 30-point game. He became the first San Antonio player to score 950 points in the first half of a season since Tim Duncan in 2003.[52] On January 19, he was named a starter for the Western Conference All-Star team in the 2017 NBA All-Star Game.

Leonard is the cousin of Stevie Johnson, wide receiver for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL).[55][56]
On January 18, 2008, Leonard's father, Mark, was shot and killed at the Compton car wash he owned.[57] As of 2014, the murderer had still not been found,[58][59][60] and the family had stopped asking authorities for updates.[61]
Leonard's girlfriend, Kishele Shipley,[62] gave birth to their first child in July 2016.[63]