You might have to go back five years for the last time Coach Pop entrusted a player with meaningful minutes this early in their first NBA season. That was the year Kawhi Leonard burst into our lives via a draft-night trade that continues to look better with each passing day.
That’s because one of the kickers in the deal was Davis Bertans, a young European prospect that the San Antonio front office hoped to bring over in the coming years. Now 24, the 6’10’’ forward’s journey hasn’t been as direct as the Klaw’s, with multiple knee injuries threatening to derail it completely, but he hasn’t wasted any time showing he belongs.