NBA Hall of Famer and current TV analyst Charles Barkley is a big believer of Toronto Raptors star Kawhi Leonard.
In a segment of the Inside the NBA show after the Raptors won the Eastern Conference Finals, Barkley heaped praises on Leonard whom he called a “drama-free superstar” who is focused on winning and winning alone.
“There's no player in the NBA I'd rather have more than Kawhi Leonard. He's a drama-free superstar … He just wants to win,” Barkley said as he defended his prediction that Toronto will win the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.
Leonard has been superb in the postseason for the Raptors. He gave the team everything he could, and just when most people thought that he has nothing more to offer after that grueling seven-game series against the Philadelphia 76ers, he took his game to another level by shutting down Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in the conference finals.
Kawhi averaged 31.2 points on 50.7 percent shooting from the field, including 38.8 percent from beyond the arc in the playoffs. He has the sixth-most most playoffs points scored before the Finals, and he's already third in the Raptors' all-time playoff scoring list. Leonard accomplished all these in his first season with Toronto, reminding everyone that he's still one of the best players in the league when he plays at his best.
With all these said, there's no surprise that there are people like Barkley who are willing to put their faith in him.
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