- Jan 2, 2010
- 82,778
- 118,270
http://fansided.com/2017/03/16/nylo...ters-ruining-kawhi-leonard-defensive-numbers/
http://insider.espn.com/nba/insider/story/_/id/18909227/three-myths-kawhi-leonard-mvp-case-nba
Very nerdy reads, but cliffnotes: Spurs' opponents shot incredibly poorly on threes and free throws with Kawhi sitting. Like, unsustainably poorly, bad enough that Kawhi was an outlier. I agree that his defense did slip a little compared to the previous season, but there also seems to be some luck/randomness involved that killed Kawhi's on/off numbers last year.
That's why I don't pay much attention to those meaningless stats. They don't take into account everything. Stoneface is a great defender.