Kawhi Leonard tortured the Utah Jazz with 18 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s 105-94 win, drawing yet another round of comparisons to Michael Jordan.
LA Clippers head coach Doc Rivers told reporters that Leonard has a “body type” more like Jordan than anyone else in the NBA.
Kawhi says he grew up studying MJ’s game and incorporating bits of it into his own.
Per ESPN:
“I said there’s no body type more like Michael Jordan’s than Kawhi, and I actually said because of his hands and his length,” Rivers said before the game. “And I did say part of his game, his in-between game, and that took a whole life [of its own].”
Leonard said he heard Rivers’ comparison as he was leading the Raptors into June and their first NBA title.
“Just to be able to get recognized for my talents and where I came a long way to where I am now and just showing my hard work is paying off,” Leonard said of Rivers’ praise.
“Yeah, for sure, he’s a guy I studied,” Leonard said of Jordan. “… He’s obviously one of the guys that everyone looks up to just from a competitive standpoint, how he approached every game. You just try to nitpick what you can take from him and bring it into yourself.”
Related Doc Rivers: Kawhi Leonard the ‘Most Like Jordan That We’ve Seen’
