POPOVICH GIBAWSAN NI LEONARD
Usa ka adlaw human gisaway ni San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich ang liderato sa iyang kanhi pambato nga si Kawhi Leonard, ang two-time National Basketball Association (NBA) Defensive Player of the Year mibawos kini pagtagawtaw.
Human sa kadaugan sa bagong puwersa ni Leonard nga mao ang Toronto Raptors batok sa Miami Heat, 125-115, kagahapon, mipagawas kini og pamahayag kabahin sa komentaryo ni Popovic.
“I heard about it. It’s just funny to me because, you know, I don’t know if he’s talking about last year or not, but I guess
when you stop playing, they forget how you lead,” matod ni Leonard.
“Other than that, it doesn’t matter. I’m here with the Raptors. My focus is on the season and not what’s going on the other side.”
Sa miaging season, si Leonard sulod lang sa siyam ka mga duwa nakapakita og aksyon sa Spurs gumikan sa nasinati niining angol (quadriceps).
Apan adunay mga higayon nga miinsister ang Spurs nga puwede nang makaduwa og balik si Leonard apan misupak kini.
Nagkalubog ang relasyon ni Leonard ug sa Spurs hangtod nga gi-trade siya kauban si Danny Green ngadto sa Raptors baylo nila ni DeMar DeRozan, center Jacob Poeltl ug 2019 protected first-round pick.
Sa miaging adlaw, si Popovich midayeg sa abilidad ni
Leonard apan iyang giklaro nga dili kini usa ka lider.
“Kawhi was a great player, but he wasn’t a leader or anything. Manu (Ginobili) and Patty (Mills) were the leaders. Kawhi’s talent will always be missed, but that leadership wasn’t his deal at that time,” matod pa ni Popovich.
“That may come as he progresses, but Manu and Patty filled that role last year, and LaMarcus (Aldridge) came a long way in that regard also.” Gitubag kini ni Leonard pinaagi sa pag-ingon, “I lead by example coming into practice every day. Just going hard and coming into these games mentally focused. You can’t see things once you’re playing on the floor. I’m just trying to lift people’s spirits up, that’s about it. Don’t try to get anybody too down, just lift them up.”