NBA Playoffs: 10 best players this postseason after Round 1

NBA Playoffs: 10 best players – 1. Kawhi Leonard

Around this time last season, Kawhi Leonard was being talked about as the best player in the world. Not necessarily the MVP, as he tended to take a number of games off during the regular season. Yet in the playoffs, his combination of defense, playmaking and isolation scoring seemed unstoppable. He was a machine designed solely with the task of winning titles.

Instead, Leonard and the Clippers absolutely collapsed against the Denver Nuggets, giving up their 3-1 series lead and costing Leonard the respect of many around the league. He had to watch from home as LeBron James led the other Los Angeles team to the title, and beat Leonard to the record of “three Finals MVPs with three teams.”

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Leonard is back and proving to doubters that they should have kept him in that top spot. When Luka Doncic started out en fuego and the Clippers fell into an 0-2 series hole, Leonard did not panic. In fact, he didn’t seem to feel any emotions at all. Rather, he went out and absolutely shredded the Dallas Mavericks’ defense, leading the Clippers to four wins in five games to survive and advance.

The cold-hearted assassin dropped 30.4 points per game in the seven-game series to go along with 7.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists. You want defense? Leonard averaged 2.0 steals and 1.2 blocks as well. His supporting cast waxed and waned, but Leonard scored at will. In Game 6, with their season on the line and the Mavericks looking to complete a comeback, he shut the door with sublime isolation scoring to put the game out of reach.

Kawhi Leonard has flaws, but they are hard to see when he is playing this well. The Clippers have a long ways to go before they will be trusted as a true title contender, but Leonard helps them get close all on his own. With all due respect to Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic, he has been the best player through the first round of the NBA playoffs.