Kawhi Leonard spoke to reporters on Wednesday afternoon and amid speculation of his pending 2019 NBA unrestricted free agency, he said he wants to finish his career with the San Antonio Spurs, according to ESPN’s Mike C. Wright.
Kawhi Leonard says he wants to finish his career with the Spurs
Leonard denied reports of friction between he and the Spurs: “Everything was done as a group.”
Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Leonard has only played in nine games this season due to an ongoing battle with quadriceps tendinopathy. Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich said he has never seen an injury like Leonard’s, and even though Tony Parker suffered a similar injury last season, he has since returned to the lineup.
The All-Star forward’s absence spawned reports of him growing “distant and disconnected” from the team and front office. In a Jan. 22 ESPN report by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Michael C. Wright, the relationship between Leonard and the Spurs was described as one that needed “work to be done to repair what has been until now a successful partnership.”
But Leonard dispelled the notion that he and the team he won 2014 NBA Finals MVP for had any issues on Wednesday.
“Everything was done as a group,” Leonard said on Wednesday, according to Tom Osborn of The San Antonio Express News. “I don’t feel like nothing was friction. I talk to Pop everyday. He knows what the progressions were. He know what I am doing the whole entire time.”
There certainly wouldn’t be any reports of friction if Leonard was healthy and contributing on both ends of the floor like the teams and its fans have grown accustomed to.
In the wild, wild Western Conference playoff picture, the Spurs have fallen out of the top four. They are currently at fifth place with a 37-27 record. That puts them just a mere 2.5 games ahead of Utah for the West’s 10th seed, but also only 1.5 games behind Portland for the No 3 slot.
A healthy Leonard, who averaged 25.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game for the Spurs last season, would give his team the best odds at keeping their two decades-long playoff streak alive. When asked how close he is to returning from a nagging quadriceps injury, Leonard replied: “Soon. I don’t have a set date right now, but I just gotta keep doing what I’m doing. The progression that I’m making has been great, so I’ve just gotta keep doing what I’m doing.”
Hopefully, his injury return is sooner than late
See More:
