Don’t let the title fool you. This isn’t a declaration, more so an evaluation and comparison of Kawhi Leonard’s candidacy for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award.
For most of the season, Leonard has been an afterthought in the MVP talks, with Russell Westbrook, James Harden and LeBron James dominating the conversation. But he forced his way in last night – and over the past couple months – by putting the Spurs on his back once again, this time taking down Harden and the Rockets.
Leonard scored 39 points in 39 minutes, hitting 12 of 18 from the field, 4-5 from three and sinking all 11 of his free throws.