I thought this was a pretty interesting take on KL. Make sure you read the part about guarding James at the end of this snippet from Rotoworld.com.
The Spurs got hornswoggled after jumping out a big lead against the Heat, giving up the second largest differential in Heat history with a 39-12 third quarter and ended up being routed in the end. I sheepishly said on Twitter on Monday that I had just pumped $225 of $1,000 FAAB dollars into Kawhi Leonard in my uber-competitive big money league, and I was admittedly a bit scared to read the box score tonight. It goes without saying then that I was pleased to see him play a team-leading 31 minutes with 12 points, two threes, six boards, and a steal.
Watching Richard Jefferson turn into Gregg Popovich’s nightly ire last season, and the subsequent draft day deal sending George Hill to get Leonard, I had calculated days and not weeks for Leonard to win the starting job. Jefferson went and started hitting 60 percent of his 3-point shots, though, and in a truncated preseason that was enough to shelve Leonard. The cream has risen to the top, though, as Leonard is taking his freakishly athletic game to a whole new level as Manu Ginobili’s replacement. Not only has he improved on his shooting, but he looks like a natural – like the type of guy who is soaking up instruction and putting it into play in minutes, not days. He’s averaging 11.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 1.3 treys per game over his last four contests, which is good for mid-round value over that span. I know it’s optimistic, but the 34 minutes per game he has seen over that time seems doable for the rest of the year because of his defense. With his wing-span, foot speed, and overall athleticism he moves like a giant spider out there and I don’t care if I’m the first to say it, he will make an all-NBA defensive team at least once in his career.
Yes, the fantasy risks are obvious – he’s a rookie playing for Pop and Manu Ginobili will be back eventually. It’s just a risk I was willing to take, as you can see.
AND IN THE NAKED LIGHT I SAW
As for Jefferson, the worry with him is that he’s just not that good. He can stick the 3-ball, but aside from being a big body he can’t defend at all. He gets lost off the ball and teams relentlessly attack him. The ironic thing is that by the numbers Jefferson is doing fairly well, holding guys to 35.6% shooting overall in a sometimes wacky Synergy accounting system (guys get credit for being witnesses to a play – you really have to watch the tape). The takeaway, and we’re seeing it already, is that Popovich is willing to put up with Jefferson’s liabilities when he’s scorching the nets. When he’s not, and when Manu Ginobili returns, Pop is going to have to decide between the better defender with offensive upside, or Jefferson and his 3-point only game. The choice will be easy – it’s Leonard.
DANNY BOY
Danny Green got hot with 6-of-7 makes from 3-point land for 20 points and has looked great all year, but his current 54.1% 3-point shooting mark will undoubtedly take a dip, if not a dive. When that happens, he’ll struggle for minutes playing behind Leonard and Jefferson. I like what I see so far, but he has four games with less than seven points in his last six contests. Let him prove himself before you go adding him after last night.
ADDITION BY SUBTRACTION
And since we’re in the realm of the Heat, it’s worth pointing out that LeBron went nuts for 33 points, five boards, four threes, and 10 assists. Watching Kawhi Leonard’s defensive possessions I caught a lot of LeBron’s act, and the rookie did well to hold his own but LeBron wasn’t going to be denied. If anybody else, and I mean anybody else was covering him – LeBron goes for 50 points or more with the way he was feeling it.
http://www.rotoworld.com/articles/nba/39693/45/dose-the-twitter-revolution
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