Usually, because he is unhealthy or simply dominant, franchise superstar Kawhi Leonard does not receive blame for a negative result. He rises to every occasion and does his best to influence victory. This was on display in the regular season, for example, against the Golden State Warriors, and in game two at Ball Arena.
However, the problem that bounced the LA Clippers out of the postseason correlates to the two-time champion being elite for just one of the seven showings. This monumental road win stole home court advantage from Denver's hands.
Furthermore, Leonard scored 39 points in game two and annihilated Denver through IQ. As an outstanding scorer, he understands how to read the hip movements of the defender in front to attack the top foot and land in his sweet spots.
One way or another, Leonard took advantage of his six-foot-seven, 225-pound build and muscled his way inside, the area he is prone to cause havoc in most. He scored on basically every attempt, as he had 12 tries and made 11 of them.
In the other six, the Clippers lost four and won two. Leonard was good, but never great, and it is time the blame falls onto his shoulders.
Kawhi Leonard is the LA Clippers' supposed best player, but he struggled to create his shots against the Denver Nuggets
By skimming over the LA Clippers' round one box scores, everyone has flared blame for the loss to James Harden and Norman Powell. These two were the Clippers' main regular-season scoring options, but they combined for 16 points, shooting 6-19, in game seven.
Conversely, Kawhi Leonard should be in the same conversation. Did he score over 20 points or more in all seven games? Yes, but as the guy who was busy resting most of the regular season, Clipper Nation expected more. Shooting 6-of-13 for 22 points on the brink of elimination is unacceptable.
Leonard struggled tremendously in terms of overall creation and teammate enhancement. Instead of wanting the ball to score at will, the two-time Defensive Player of the Year looked like the star who took his precious time in the half-court and let the defense open up before being aggressive.
Fatigue or simply not preparing adequately may have been confounding factors, but Leonard made it evident that he had not played legitimate postseason basketball in years.
The Clippers' logic of resting him for 45 games tied into the playoff conquest, yet he was outdone by Nikola Jokic. This is where the criticism deserves to be.