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Kawhi Leonard credited his playoff experience as a member of the San Antonio Spurs as a reason he's been able to pick apart defenses throughout the postseason, including a lethal average of 38 points per game and a surgical efficiency in his series against the Philadelphia 76ers, shooting a scorching 62% from the floor.
“I was fortunate enough to be on some pretty good teams early, so I was able to see defenses going on deep playoff runs and try to establish that early,” said Leonard, according to Michael Lee of The Athletic. “I feel like that probably helped me out to today, now that I’m 27. Just really growing up, learning from players, watching great players, seeing how they either control the game or just playing at their own speed and not trying to be rushed by a defender.”
The Toronto Raptors star has never seemed rushed or forced to play outside of his own pace throughout the playoffs, regardless of the higher intensity or the stakes that come from making every game so vital.
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Leonard has learned from the best to control the pace of the game by never rushing or fading into the background, but rather keeping calm and steady, a trait that only comes with maturity and a fair share of playoff experience.
“That’s the thing that impresses me the most is he literally never gets up, never gets down. I’ve seen him scream one time, after a dunk,” said his teammate Kyle Lowry. “That’s just him. And that’s the one thing that he brings for everybody else. There’s never a moment for us. There’s just this constant stillness.”
The Raptors have weathered the storm after going down 2-1 to the 76ers, and now have two of the next three games at home to decide the series after tying it up 2-2 on Sunday.
