3 reasons the San Antonio Spurs are better off without Kawhi Leonard

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1. He can’t stay healthy

When he’s healthy, Kawhi Leonard is one of the best player in the NBA. He plays hard on both ends of the floor. He can guard the opposing team’s best player all night and still lead his team in multiple categories on the offensive end. In his last complete season in 2016-17, he recorded 25.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 48.5 percent from the field. With these kinds of numbers, it’s no surprise that the Spurs were planning to build their next era of basketball around him.

The only problem? He can’t stay healthy. In his seven years in the league, he’s never played more than 74 games. He has missed games due to a wild assortment of ailments. Here is a list of just a fraction of them, courtesy of FOX Sports:

2014: torn ligament, right hand
2014: eye infection
2016: right quad contusion
2016: sore left calf
2017: concussion
2017: sprained left ankle
2018: partial left shoulder tear
2018: sore right quadriceps

The sad truth is that Leonard falls into a category of player that is just chronically injured or unfit to play. The concerning part is how spread out his injuries are across his body. Much like the infamous Derrick Rose, Leonard could at any given time be sitting out due to an injury anywhere in his body.

The word “sore” appears one in three times in his injury history. This means half the time he is sitting out without even having an official injury. Ask LeBron James how often he plays through soreness on a given night — the answer is probably “100 percent of the time.”

Isolated injuries can be treated. Even Russell Westbrook, one of the most indestructible players in the league, has had to have three surgeries on his knee over the years. But to be constantly battling injuries of such a wide variety as Leonard does is indicative of a more serious problem. Some players just can’t stay healthy, and he appears to be one of them.

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For that reason, and the others discussed in this piece, the Spurs are better off without Kawhi Leonard.

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