San Antonio Spurs: Kawhi Leonard Has Been Absolutely Ridiculous In The Playoffs

Kawhi Leonard has been absolutely ridiculous in the NBA Playoffs, and it makes the San Antonio Spurs that much more dangerous

In just his first two playoff games this postseason, Kawhi Leonard has 69 points, shooting 20-28 from the field, and is an unbelievable 28-28 from the foul stripe. Plain and simple, the Memphis Grizzlies have no answer for Kawhi Leonard – or the San Antonio Spurs. He is unguardable and unstoppable.

"[via ESPN]Who on the Grizzlies can stop Leonard? Four Grizzlies have guarded him on at least five of his plays this seriesVince Carter, James Ennis, Marc Gasol and Wayne Selden. Leonard is a combined 17-of-19 against them, with 21 of his 28 free throw attempts resulting from matchups against that quartet."

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The elderly Carter obviously doesn’t have the bounce and quickness that he once had. Marc Gasol is simply not quick enough laterally to stay with Leonard. So, that leaves Ennis and Selden.

Ennis is the longer of the two and has better size, while Selden is a very physically gifted guard. These two players are probably the best options that the Grizzlies have. However, Ennis doesn’t seem to have the quickness or the strength to contain Leonard. And Selden is an undrafted rookie, who barely has any NBA experience, so trying to stay with one of the best players in the world is a daunting task to say the least.

There are two very important factors to note. One, the absence of Tony Allen. Allen would have been the player to take on the challenge of staying with Leonard. Although undersized, he has the tenacity and the experience to at least slow down Leonard at times in the game.

Secondly, there is no offensive wing threat that Leonard has to deal with on the defensive end. The reason that both of these issues are problematic is the fact that Kawhi Leonard now has the ability to conserve his energy, which has assisted in his offensive efficiency.

He doesn’t have a pest like Tony Allen to worry about, and he doesn’t have to worry too much on the defensive end. The loss of Chandler Parsons is not being talked about enough, and would have been a huge asset for the Grizzlies in this series. In order to take down Leonard, you need to make his life more difficult, you have to wear him down. Unfortunately for the Grizzlies, there is nothing they can do.

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Shaq and Charles Barkley recently said that Leonard is the 2nd best player in the world (behind LeBron James). If Leonard continues his elite play on both ends of the floor, it is going to be very hard for people to argue such a claim.

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