It’s the kind of shot that speaks to a great evening in progress. In the fourth quarter, at the end of a very poorly started possession for the Clippers, where the Jazz almost intercepted the leather, Kawhi Leonard threw a “runner”… from the 3-point line. Who was coming home, obviously.
“ I saw that there were three seconds left on the clock. So I sent, I had to clear an 'airball' on an easy, open shot “, describes the Clippers leaderinvoking the intervention of “ Basketball Gods “. The journalist who interviews him after the match points out to him that kids on the field are training to imitate his gesture. Which triggers a brief smile, a rarity for him, from Kawhi Leonard.
The axis of success
The latter has what it takes after his full match on the Jazz floor. The Los Angeles winger produced a demonstration of efficiency, getting rid of John Collins and others too easily to reach the circle. And by aligning the shots at 
3-pointers and “fadeaway” a few meters from the circle, remaining permanently in the axis of the circle. Not a single shot in the corners.
“ I thought he played at a good pace and his teammates kept looking for him and passing by him. He was able to produce », summarizes his coach Tyronn Lue, whose speech echoes that of his player: “ PG (Paul George), (James) Harden and everyone else make it easy for me. »
While he has sometimes had difficulty finding himself and expressing himself offensively since the arrival of the bearded man, the double MVP of the NBA Finals recalled that he remains an exceptional attacker. As evidenced by his 41 points, his best outing this season, with excellent percentages (14/23 on shots including 6/8 from distance and 7/7 on throws), 5 rebounds and 5 assists for 41 evaluation.
“ We made saves and took shots. Our defense allowed us to hold on. We had a stable group and a good state of mind to continue moving forward. The last two matches, we were behind in the first quarters. You have to take the advantage from the start in their room, (Jazz) plays very well at home. This allowed us to breathe a little easier throughout the match », analyzes “The Klaw”.
| Kawhi Leonard | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2011-12 | SAN | 64 | 24 | 49.3 | 37.6 | 77.3 | 1.6 | 3.5 | 5.1 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 7.9 |
| 2012-13 | SAN | 58 | 31 | 49.4 | 37.4 | 82.5 | 1.1 | 4.9 | 6.0 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 11.9 |
| 2013-14 | SAN | 66 | 29 | 52.2 | 37.9 | 80.2 | 1.2 | 5.1 | 6.2 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 12.8 |
| 2014-15 | SAN | 64 | 32 | 47.9 | 34.9 | 80.2 | 1.3 | 5.9 | 7.2 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 16.5 |
| 2015-16 | SAN | 72 | 33 | 50.6 | 44.3 | 87.4 | 1.3 | 5.5 | 6.9 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 21.2 |
| 2016-17 | SAN | 74 | 33 | 48.5 | 38.0 | 88.0 | 1.1 | 4.7 | 5.8 | 3.5 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 25.5 |
| 2017-18 | SAN | 9 | 23 | 46.8 | 31.4 | 81.6 | 0.7 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 16.2 |
| 2018-19 | TOR | 60 | 34 | 49.6 | 37.1 | 85.4 | 1.3 | 6.0 | 7.3 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 26.6 |
| 2019-20 | LAKE | 57 | 32 | 47.0 | 37.8 | 88.6 | 1.0 | 6.1 | 7.1 | 4.9 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 27.1 |
| 2020-21 | LAKE | 52 | 34 | 51.2 | 39.8 | 88.5 | 1.1 | 5.4 | 6.5 | 5.2 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 24.9 |
| 2022-23 | LAKE | 52 | 34 | 51.2 | 41.6 | 87.1 | 1.1 | 5.4 | 6.5 | 3.9 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 23.8 |
| 2023-24 | LAKE | 20 | 35 | 47.9 | 39.3 | 82.9 | 0.9 | 5.0 | 5.9 | 3.5 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 21.6 |
| Total | 648 | 32 | 49.5 | 38.8 | 85.8 | 1.2 | 5.2 | 6.4 | 3.0 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 19.7 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
