The Clippers are on the brink of elimination from this year’s playoffs. Shannon Sharpe wants Kawhi Leonard to be questioned like LeBron James.
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The NBA has become one of the most diverse international basketball leagues in the world without giving up on quality. In fact, one might argue that this is the most talented generation of NBA players ever. And they’d be right for the most part.
Some believe that this happened because of the NBA foregoing the high school drafts and moving towards one-and-done. This has allowed more polished prospects to compete for the prize berth of an NBA roster spot.
As a result, today’s best prospects are either athletic freaks and raw, or polished and have passing athleticism. Think great NBA draft prospects, think Luka Doncic rather than Deandre Ayton.
Kawhi Leonard definitely belongs to the first class of talents rather than the second. Nothing about his game screamed out ‘Offensive Dynamite!’ in his first 3 years in the NBA.
However, the 29-year-old worked on his skill till he reached this point of dominance. He underlined it best in the Raptors’ championship run back in 2019. However, Kawhi has arguably not reached that same level during his time with the Clippers.
“If LeBron James or Kevin Durant had these stats, we’d be asking questions”: Shannon Sharpe on Kawhi Leonard
Shannon Sharpe believes that Kawhi Leonard should be held to the same standards as LeBron James and Kevin Durant:
“When is Kawhi Leonard going to receive that superstar criticism? Like Steph, like KD, like a Harden, like a Giannis. We know he’s never received the criticism GOAT James has received.”
“Kawhi is talked about like he’s a top-5, top-6 player. But he gets criticism like he’s in the bottom 37 or 38. Let LeBron, KD and Giannis have a stat line like this, we would rip them. But Kawhi get to escape. Why? Y’all said he’s a superstar.”
Let LeBron, KD and Giannis have a stat line like this, we would rip them. But Kawhi get to escape. Why? Y’all said he’s a superstar. pic.twitter.com/X0TCZbWcLB
— shannon sharpe (@ShannonSharpe) June 3, 2021