Kawhi Leonard was the player who amazed everyone by leading the Toronto Raptors to the title in 2019. He had already shone in San Antonio, where he was also a champion, but his great moment was in Canada. Since then, between injuries, controversies and the quicksand that the Clippers tend to be, his career has been dissipating, losing luster and becoming confused in mediocrity… until this past night.
It was the performance of the day and surely one of the most outstanding of the season so far. It was not only the 55 points scored against the Detroit Pistons in a much-needed 112-99 victory for the Clippers, it was the way he did it and everything that accompanied a fabulous performance.
The first thing is that the 55 points is his career best. And he could have surpassed it. He actually played only six minutes in the last quarter and even when his coach told him that he could take him out to break the team record, he preferred not to do so: “I said ‘I’d rather play another game than risk it in this one’. Hopefully we can get another win and be in the same situation. It is what it is.” With his 55 points, Leonard equals the best scoring performance in the history of his franchise, which he now shares with his teammate James Harden.
The 55 points are a continuation of the 41 he scored in the previous game against the Rockets, making him only the second player in Clippers history with two consecutive 40-point games, after the legendary Bob McAdoo. Kawhi scored 26 points in the third quarter (most players don’t score that many in a whole game), but in that period he missed his only free throw of the game. The point would have been enough for the Clippers record, but the miss also ended a streak of 64 consecutive free throws made, which is a franchise record.
There is more. In the game, Kawhi made five steals (in addition to 11 rebounds), making him the only player in history to record a game with 55 points, five steals and three blocks since steals have been counted (1973-74).
He is also the first player to score 50 or more points and five steals in three quarters in the play-by-play era, and matches Harden as the only players to finish a game with 55 or more points, five or more steals, and 10 or more rebounds in the last 50 years in the NBA.
“He’s finally getting healthy and healthy and finally able to play enough minutes to be very effective,” Lue said of Leonard, who is averaging 39 points over the last four games. “When he’s healthy, he’s one of the best players in the league. We’ve been able to see that lately.”
It’s the return of the Leonard who amazed the world back in 2019, when he became one of the best players on the planet. On Monday, against the Pistons at least, he was back to his best.
Read the full article here
