San Antonio Spurs All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard saw his season come to an abrupt end in the Western Conference Finals due to suffering an ankle sprain when he stepped on Golden State Warriors big man Zaza Pachulia's foot in Game 1 of the series.
The NBA has since directed its referees to have a strong emphasis on calling reckless closeouts on players shooting jumpers that could cause injury. During the Spurs' Media Day on Monday, Leonard weighed in on the new rule.
Kawhi on the new ZaZa rule #Spurs #NBA pic.twitter.com/Df26jjo4sM
— Jabari Young (@JabariJYoung) September 25, 2017
“I think it's good to protect the players from getting hurt. It happened in the past that I have seen when I wasn't in the NBA, so I think it's a good rule for the defender to be cautious.”
This should help significantly reduce the rate at which this situation can arise moving forward. Given the nature of the game, this type of play has happened from time to time in the NBA but the renewed emphasis on cracking down on it should make a significant difference.
What had brought attention toward the matter was the timing of the injury and the fact that it occurred to one of the star players in the league. It could be argued that Leonard's absence shifted how the series played out as the Spurs held a 20-point lead when the 26-year-old went down.
This led to San Antonio playing even more short-handed without the services of both Leonard and point guard Tony Parker, who had suffered a ruptured quadriceps tendon in the Western Conference semifinals. Ultimately, this could prevent situations like this from occurring down the road.
Follow Us
Subscribe