Rarely does a 22-year-old superstar keep such a low profile. San Antonioās Kawhi Leonard wouldnāt have it any other way.
Weāre told to remove bias from our vocabularies. Weāre told that when we type, when we watch, when we analyze, weāre to remove ourselves from partiality.
Iām not the only one who took a fancy to Kawhi Leonard this NBA postseason. In fact, a majority of the country did.

Air Alamo
Last night, Leonard became the youngest NBA Finals MVP since 1999 when teammate Tim Duncan won the accolade. There are players who never make the grandest stage in professional basketball; Leonard has made it twice in his two-year tenure in the league, and he can reasonably expect this one wonāt be his last.
Leonard led the Spurs in scoring for the third consecutive game, leading to San Antonioās fifth NBA championship.
The AT&T Center shook violently with the deafening roar of āKawhi M-V-Pā chants throughout the fourth quarter of Game 5. Rightfully so, Leonard has led the Spurs in scoring for the third consecutive game, leading to San Antonioās fifth NBA championship.
As he timidly shuffled across the stage, 11-time champion Bill Russellāan NBA deityāhanded the 22-year-old his award. When ESPNās Stewart Scott probed him in its wake with a series of questions meant to loosen the oft-placid guy up, Leonard was as candid as weāve grown to expect.
āEverybody is just living in the moment right now,ā Leonard said. āReally donāt know whatās going on. Right now, itās just surreal to me. I have a great group of guys behind me.ā
Maybe itās because he doesnāt talk much.
Leonard has managed to stay beneath the surface. Heās happier there.
In a league fixated on driving revenue and bright lights and interviews prompting steroidal egos, Leonard has managed to stay beneath the surface. Heās happier there. And in his atypically introverted demeanorāone few understand in any industry, let alone basketballā professional sports and those who watch them can find something wholesome and inspiring in Leonard.
The poetic justice is he didnāt make the All-Star Game this season. Yet, he may have made the largest transformation of anyone in the league, despite his minimal coverage prior to the playoffs. You wouldnāt know that, though, because Leonard would rather contribute than compliment. Heād rather play basketball than deal with the politics and interpersonal baggage his platform inherently provides. Leonard is a different breed of athlete, the one who never shed his love-for-the-game skin. The one we all were at one point or another.
āI just have to keep working into wanting to be that guy,ā Leonard said in an interview with the Los Angeles Daily News in May. āItās all mental. I just have to worry about my game.ā
He has continually shattered his ceiling this year; heās no longer latent, Kawhi has arrived.
Leonard has managed to stay beneath the surface. Heās happier there. Lest we forget the Spursā most prominent prospect is 22, just now able to buy a legal drink. Leonard has shed the training wheels that bogged down his defensive acumen in last yearās NBA Finals matchup with the Miami Heat. He has continually shattered his ceiling this year; heās no longer latent, Kawhi has arrived.
He entered Game 5 preordained to win the accolade if the Spurs were to win the series. When he was questioned about the prospect, Leonard echoed his temperament.
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āIt doesnāt mean nothing to me,ā Leonard said at Saturdayās media availability at the Spurs practice facility. āJust try to go out and win the next game, and thatās all Iām doing. I mean, because those are not my expectations. Iām trying to win a championship, and until we win, thatās when Iāll be satisfied.ā
Hereās to hoping Leonardāthe heir to San Antonioās Big 3ānever becomes satisfied. When he does, weāll have lost something truly very special: Authentic love for sport by someone who has every reason to leave his or her abode beneath the current.
āThey all pushed me, coach Pop pushed me, the fans pushed me and I just want to thank God and my parents and everybody.ā