Kawhi Leonard....
 

Yeah, he's pretty bad ass :wink

I love kawhi....but a long time ago i remember making a george hill thread after i think the dallas series....never again will i jump the gun.... kawhi good...but im not sure i take anything from this... i pray its a "breakout" or something...bout think it just one of those ON games.

Kawhi hasn't really been a debbie downer to begin with. His injuries didn't help matters but if you look at his stats over the last 6 games he's avg. 16/6, he's coming around and he's a lot better than GHill ever was. I'm not jumping on the bandwagon cause I've been a fan from day one :thumb

He has a lot of Pippen in his game , top 50 all time , 1996 Pippen.

A telling quote from Pop about last night “He’s a guy we’re trying to expand his game, but we don’t know what direction to go in,” Popovich said. “He’s a really talented kid. He really wants to be a great player. Tonight, you saw some of that.”"

Starting next year the Spurs Big Three will be Tim, Tony and Kawhi.

What gave me warm fuzzies is that he can actually create offense when he wants to. He was aggressive, went to the line or scored. His shooting touch needs some honing, but this kid is the real deal. I never felt this way about Hill.

Look, even if you never really felt that way about George Hill, George is a full-time starter in this league on a really good team. He is a solid player and will be for a long time. And Leonard Would be what, a senior in college this year?

He would actually only be a Jr. :wink

What gives me pause and makes my heart flutter at the same time is how RC, Pop and their staff can see untapped talent out there that nobody else can……….and we’ve got these guys working for the Spurs. Take George Hill, for instance. I had never heard of him but given time against NBA talent, he’s become a force to be reckoned with, both offensively and defensively. Long arms!! And take Kawhi --- again, a sophomore out of college and draft eligible. He was probably at the top of the Spurs draft list but who is he? The Spurs knew that much about him that they had to sacrifice Hill to get him. I now know that was a big pill to swallow given Hills statistics with the Pacers. But with Kawhi, he’s immediately put against future Hall of Fame players to defend and handles himself quite nicely. And he’s still learning. And his offense --- deadly at the mid-range, can knife through a crowd for a dunk and has a lethal 3 point shot? Gadszooks!! If Kawhi is said to be a raw talent, a diamond in the rough say, the league better watch out when the polished version emerges and presents itself. And he’s wearing silver and black too. Bless my lucky stars.

My point is....george hill was a stud in that dallas series...seemed like he knocked down everything...from then on, he was average... kawhi much better than hill IMO. Indiana a really good team? Stretching it a little there? They are good in a really weak eastern conf...id say they are ok... i wouldnt want george hill back...

I guess im the only one that didnt think george hill was a prize...i dont think he is a force on either side of the ball.

Nah you're not the only one, I always thought he was a competent role player, but nothing to get excited about.

Man I'm getting old....lol, You're right Grizzly, he would be a Sr. This year facepalm

Kawhi is Mr. Creative!

Such a super natural Creative player!

Me LOVE watching his game on both ends of the floor.

How long we were waiting on such an incredible & Super Talented Spurs player for that position!!!:hat

G Hill is a Guard. Don't mix oranges and apples here....
Kawhi has the SIZE, the Better Natural Talent, and the more CREATIVITY!

Kawhi will be soon taking over HUGE Spurs ROLE!

Go KAWHI!!!:D

I posted a thread displaying my disappointment in Kawhi. I've been waiting for him to show these type of signs and it was great to watch. We need this from him to contend for a championship. Nando and Green are coming along also. Nando has shown he can handle the rock and pass. Green is showing he can shoot with more consistency. Go Spurs go!

I think you could say that starting this year.

you're right but, like katyspursfan pointed out, it seems Pop is hinting to try that this year. with Manu/Parker in the game, he can't play anything close to how he did last night. he won't have the ball to handle and would be relegated to a spot up shooter. Manu isn't really a spot up shooter, he's more of a pass first-score second shooting guard.

this is one of the reasons why i wouldn't doubt Manu is in the discussions for a trade over Jackson. Jax can create on his own, but he's the opposite of Manu in that he prefers to spot up shoot first. next year Kawhi will have a different role. look for him to have plays run around him and play off the ball with spot up shooting and cutting to the basket.

Kawhi is basically fulfilling what the Spurs wanted Richard Jefferson to do his whole tenure.

[quote]Actually. my point was...
if the Spurs had to choose to put out EITHER Manu or Kawhi Leonard every night, I think they'd prefer Kawhi.
Fortunately, they get the option of putting out both most nights. Not nearly as many as we'd hope, but you take what you get. There were threads a half dozen years ago about how long Manu would survive, given his style of play.

This is so true. KL has shown he can be as good as anything that was ever expected of RJ. But I like the KL ceiling even more. It's a shame that RJ couldn't get his ceiling above the foundation in San Antonio. Maybe he was expecting a basement, coming from up north.

This year, I think of them as the big 2 and a half...

Kawhi would be a senior. 2 years at SDSU. This is season 2 as a Spur.

Change of pace attack. Pop rotates the bullets in the chamber and attacks with Kawhi in the playoffs. CIA does not have open practices. This is a move the opponents will not place a priority on because they say Pop will stick to Big 3. What the Spurs are know are a Team and Pop finally has a full compliment of options in his Basketball Swiss Army knife.

Leonard is the starter. Has been for about a year. It was an awesome trade. Leonard was taken higher than Hill. Nando did what Hill has done. Plus Neal. So its not a knock on Hill to like Kawhi for the Spurs more.
Kawhi showed some great skills. Pop has been keeping him under wraps. Maybe he starts atacking more now through playoffs.

Leonard is what the Spurs needed. Hill is what Indiana needed.

I also think people forget about last years playoffs, Kawhi was arguably are most consistant player in the entire playoffs......as a rookie!!!! Can't wait to see what he does these playoffs!!!!!

I have to admit, sometimes I forget that when it comes to the Spurs, a players true talent and ability can be hidden by having to fit into a role. Kawhi has looked good when he has had to step up with the big 3 missing time. I was even suggesting trading him for Garnet. I don't think I would suggest that anymore...not unless we got something else very significant in return.

How did he have to score so much without the big 3? Why can't Bonner step up and get some points?lol

Kwahi did well at the all star funnies too but Kenneth Faried stole the show with 40 points mostly via dunks

I think he needs more ball handling skills, which he'll get. And more demonstrative when attacking the rim. But to learn to contourt his body ala Manu. His "Nobody is going to stop me attitude" will come.

What impressed me the most about Kawhi has been the Chicago game during the Rodeo Road trip? Kawhi seemed to demonstrate leadership abilities especially on the defensive end by call out for spacing. So Happy to be a Spurs fan.

Also looking back at the NBA Mock Drafts, Kawhi was supposed to have been a Lottery pick at least top 10. Yet the Spurs FO shrewedly swooped in to steal him at 16..

+1! I know it's not going to happen, but if we could ,get Josh Smith, he and Kawhis' defense would be terrible for opponents! And somehow talk him and Tiago to take less like the Miami trio...Wow! But I doubt it.

why is this george hill vs kawhi leonard?
george hill was great. he played a whole different position and he cant do things kawhi does b/c he's not a big, not as long. kawhi cant handle and move the ball as well as hill.

they are both great, and i think it woulda been awesome having them both. that being said. i like that we have kawhi. but it doesnt make me want to say negative things about hill ... george hill was a excellent as a spur. with tp and danny green, our use for kawhi is prob a lot more than for hill.

if things were different and we didnt have a pg or sg starter, and we had josh smith or something retarded for our sf, hill would prob be more beneficial to the team