The dust has settled on the Kawhi Leonard trade. The Toronto Raptors are leading the Eastern Conference and the San Antonio Spurs are currently hovering around .500 and looking to find their way. Coach Gregg Popovich spoke about the superstar forward to USA Today and revealed he felt Leonard was not a leader.
“Kawhi was a great player, but he wasn’t a leader or anything,” Popovich said. “But that leadership wasn’t his deal at that time. That may come as he progresses, but Manu and Patty filled that role last year, and LaMarcus (Aldridge) came a long way in that regard also.”
Kawhi Leonard heard about the comments through the grapevine of the NBA media and issued a response statement.
“I heard about it. It’s just funny to me because, you know, I don’t know if he’s talking about last year or not, but I guess when you stop playing they forget how you lead,” Leonard said according to ESPN. “Other than that, it doesn’t matter. I’m here with the Raptors. My focus is on the season and not what’s going on the other side.”
Since joining the Raptors, all has been quiet on the Kawhi front. He is balling and the squad is looking like a legit contender. Will he stay beyond this year remains to be seen.
