VIDEO: Kawhi Leonard's Explanation for Not Being a Vocal Leader With Spurs Proves Why He's a Great Teammate
The phrase "locker room presence" gets thrown around a lot when talking about players and their effect on the chemistry of the team. At the end of his time with the San Antonio Spurs, Kawhi Leonard was plagued with questions about this. However, Leonard explained that he knew his role and it wasn't up to him to be a vocal leader with his former team.
Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard on why he’s evolved as a more vocal leader after time w/ Spurs: “Earlier in my career, I was playing with Hall of Fame players. It wasn’t my role to do that. I had a head coach who was Hall of Fame. They weren’t looking at a 20-year-old kid to be talking.” pic.twitter.com/DouDoKVobz
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) January 15, 2020
When playing withe Spurs, Kawhi had three Hall of Fame-caliber players on his team and one of the best coaches of all time. There was clearly no need for Leonard to voice his opinions out loud and disrupt the team's harmony.
NBA fans have certainly seen Leonard grow as he became a veteran and earned superstar status. While he's still largely soft-spoken, we see him directing teammates on the court and chiming in when he needs to, especially in tight-game situations.
Danny Green said today he has never seen Kawhi Leonard this vocal. Nurse had talked yesterday of Leonard's leadership. Green isn't sure if it is a seniority/age thing (wasn't going to say much around Duncan, Manu, Parker, etc.) but said he definitely seems comfortable here.
— Ryan Wolstat (@WolstatSun) October 8, 2018
Needless to say, Leonard's approach worked, as he was the MVP of both NBA Finals wins he was a part of with the Raptors and Spurs. The Clippers star seems to be extremely self-aware and understands when it's time to speak up even if his soft-spoken nature defines who he is.