LA Clippers: 3 players who have most to prove this postseason

Kawhi Leonard has quite a legacy already, but could continue to build his all-time great resume with another NBA Finals win.

I have little doubt that Kawhi will play elite-level basketball in the postseason this year.

Leonard has slain some of the toughest tasks in NBA Finals history already.

As if containing LeBron James and winning the NBA Finals MVP in 2013 wasn’t enough, he ended the Golden State Warriors dynasty in 2019, arguably by himself.

The reason he still has much to prove this year, however, is his dip from how he performed in the 2019 postseason to what he put on display last year.

To put it in perspective, Leonard averaged 28.5 points per game, 9.8 rebounds per game, 4.2 assists per game, 2 steals per game, and 1.2 blocks per game in the 2019 NBA Finals.

He was knocked out in just the second round of the playoffs last year after averaging just 24.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. He did play good defense, but the Clippers were a much more talented team than that Denver Nuggets squad. (Not to mention those Nuggets were much worse than the 2019 Golden State Warriors.)

As the number one option on the team, Leonard received a substantial amount of criticism for the disappointment.

Leonard has been there and done that in the NBA. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’ll bounce back from what happened, and it’s out there for him to prove himself very shortly when the postseason kicks in gear.