Fansided

Michael Jordan loves Kawhi Leonard’s game as much as the rest of us

By Brendon Kleen

SAN ANTONIO, TX - MAY 9: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots a free throw during the game against the Houston Rockets during Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2017 NBA Playoffs on May 9, 2017 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photos by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
SAN ANTONIO, TX - MAY 9: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots a free throw during the game against the Houston Rockets during Game Five of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2017 NBA Playoffs on May 9, 2017 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photos by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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In the case of Michael Jordan and Kawhi Leonard, it’s merely an example of real respecting real.

Recently, at one of Michael Jordan’s Flight School basketball camps, the NBA legend got on the topic of Kawhi Leonard. He ended up discussing the biggest Kawhi question of the offseason: “Could Kawhi get buckets on Kawhi?” In response to the paradox presented by Leonard’s most recent Jordan Brand commercial, a young baller asked Jordan the unanswerable question. He responded by saying Leonard is “the best two-way player in the game right now”.

Jordan might not be wrong. Many of the NBA’s best players’ talents are focused on one side of the ball, from James Harden to Russell Westbrook to LeBron James. Leonard has proven himself year after year to be one of the most productive players in the entire league on both sides of the court.

After winning the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2015 and 2016, the Spurs star finished third in voting this season, in addition to his third-place MVP finish. He is the only player that media members voted onto both lists. He and Russell Westbrook are the only players to finish in the top ten in both Offensive and Defensive Win Shares this year.

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It’s been a while since Jordan gave opinions on the league as strong as this one. He has mostly left the rating and ranking game to other former players since becoming involved as an owner. That he values Leonard’s old-school two-way game says a lot about Leonard’s respect around the NBA.

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Like the entire Spurs organization, Leonard mostly keeps quiet and lets his performance speak for itself. He’s unlikely to respond publicly to Jordan’s comments, but the Jordan Brand ad and this proclamation are, as Spurs blog Pounding the Rock said, “worthy of him”. Mostly, this is all just a sign that Michael Jordan loves Kawhi Leonard as much as the rest of us.

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