Kawhi Leonard's Obsession With Michael Jordan Revealed
Since his rise to greatness, Kawhi Leonard's play-style and will to win has often been compared to Michael Jordan. The comparison even reached the national level when Doc Rivers was handed a $50,000 tampering fine during the 2019 playoffs for comparing Kawhi to Jordan.
According to Kawhi Leonard's college coach, the similarities between him and MJ are a product of Kawhi's relentless obsession with Jordan in college. In a 2019 article from the Athletic's Jayson Jenks, it was revealed that Kawhi Leonard would study Michael Jordan film relentlessly.
Kawhi Leonard's assistant coach at San Diego State University, Dave Velazquez, told the Athletic that the minute Kawhi finished a game, he would be on his phone watching Jordan film. He would not be texting or talking on the phone, but instead he would be studying Jordan's moves.
Kawhi's college teammate LaBradford Franklin added to the story when he told the Athletic that Kawhi would always tell his teammates, "I'm Mike. You like LeBron, you like Kobe? Yeah, they’re cool, but I’m Mike. I want to be the best, the greatest."
In the years since his relentless pursuit of Jordan's greatness, Kawhi Leonard has accumulated 7 All-Defense awards, 5 All-NBA awards, 5 All-Star selections, 2 titles, 2 Finals MVP awards, 2 DPOY awards, and 1 ASG MVP. After winning the 2020 All-Star Game MVP award, Kawhi Leonard joined Michael Jordan as the only two players in NBA history with a Finals MVP, DPOY award, and ASG MVP. Giannis Antetokounmpo has since joined that list with his FMVP in 2021.
In his 11 playoff games in 2021 before getting hurt, Kawhi was putting up historic numbers. Averaging 30 PPG on 57% from the field in the 2021 playoffs, he was on pace to join Shaquille O'Neal and Kareem Abdul Jabbar as the only players in NBA history to average at least 30 PPG and 7 RPG on at least 57% from the field in a single playoff run. While he will likely be out the entirety of next season, Kawhi Leonard will return to the court in further pursuit of Jordan's greatness.
