Is Kawhi Leonard Worth all the Fuss!?

Much has been made about how the Spurs are stuck between a rock and a hard place with Kawhi Leonard’s trade demand to go to the Los Angeles Lakers. But considering the last 12 months of controversy and the overall injury track record. Kawhi Leonard really seems to just be passing the buck and ducking the responsibility of being a teams best player. The “mis-handling” of the quad injury and recently reported beef with Tony Parker really seem like excuses to high tail it out of town into a situation where the responsibility of being the leader can fall on other shoulders.

Its undeniable that Leonard is a superb 2-way player. But his injury history and his demeanor scream that he is not the kind of player you mortgage your future on to take you to the promised land. In his 7 seasons in the league he has played more than 70 games only twice with 5 seasons of less than 65 games played capped with the 17-18 season where he only played 9 and essentially gave up on the team because of disagreement with the medical staff. he then demands a trade through a 3rd party and then blames his overall dissatisfaction on one franchises living legends.

In a big picture bubble the arrows point to Leonard not really wanting that #1 guy responsibility. His way of relaying that is somewhat passive aggressive. But more than that it is toxic to team chemistry and that is something that any team looking to trade for Kawhi needs to take a look at along with all of the other mitigating factors. If you are a team like Lakers or 76ers with a roster full of young impressionable players is Kawhi Leonard the kind of locker room presence you need to teach the rest of the guys the NBA ropes which we are talking about responsibility to the team, fans and a commitment to taking responsibility for ones own actions.

Its not just enough to be an uber talented player. As lame as it sounds “With Great Talent Comes Great Responsibility”. With the retirement of Tim Duncan and being the guy that the San Antonio Spurs organization and fanbase are looking to for team leadership and commitment could be just be too much for his personality to cope with. Being a bonafide #2 guy may be the best fit for Kawhi despite his overall skill package. Not everyone is leadership material from a mental standpoint and forcing leadership on a unwilling personality can lead to the kind of shenanigans the Spurs have been dealing with in regards to Leonard.

With the trade demand Kawhi could be doing the Spurs a favor because they get a chance to move on from the indecisiveness that has developed over the last year and the players can look to a leader who is a bit more willing to take the mantle. Who that is at this point is anybody’s guess. But closer is definitely under-rated and moving Kawhi now even if it is not for “value” is likely the best case scenario for the San Antonio Spurs if not for the team on the receiving end of a deal that could ultimately turn out to be fools gold.