NBA teams
Amin Elhassan, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Kawhi Leonard's defensive impact

NBA

Kawhi Leonard's had quite the last 12 months, helping the San Antonio Spurs capture their first title in seven years, earning Finals MVP honors in the process. Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich declared again that the team was built not around the Big Three, but the "Big One" of Leonard, a stance Popovich has expressed before in calling Leonard the future of the franchise. Despite the platitudes of his teammates and his coach, a rookie-scale extension was not agreed to last fall. However, most around the NBA expect Leonard to command maximum-level salary in the open market.

The Spurs' performance in the last month and a half has reinforced the idea of Leonard as the most important player on the roster. San Antonio struggled in Leonard's absence, going 7-8, and flourished upon his return, going 6-1 entering tonight's matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers. The Spurs actually posted an uncharacteristically negative net rating in the month without Leonard, being outscored by more than a point per 100 possessions.

His return brought with it a sharp increase in net rating, as San Antonio has been besting opponents by almost seven points per 100 possessions, but there's a catch -- the Spurs' offense has increased only negligibly in that span (0.2 points per 100 possessions better). Leonard's impact has come almost exclusively on the defensive end. In essence, he takes them from a rather mediocre defensive outfit (allowing more than 102 points per 100 possessions) to an elite one (allowing 95 points per 100 possessions).


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