Spurs coach Gregg Popovich: Kawhi Leonard not ‘one-trick pony kind of guy’

Kawhi Leonard

Kawhi Leonard/Photo courtesy of San Antonio Spurs, NBA.com

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich wasn’t shocked at what Kawhi Leonard did Friday in the Spurs’ 100-73 Game 3 victory over the Clippers at AT&T Center in San Antonio. Leonard did lead the Spurs in scoring during the regular season with a 16.5 average, so he was already more than just the recently crowned Defensive Player of the Year.

Chip Engelland and Chad Forcier do a great job with him on his development,” Popovich said of two of his assistants. “He (Leonard) comes in early. He stays late. He’s worked on everything since he got here. He wasn’t a 3-point shooter, he was a big guy; he was an inside guy.

“They have really been the masters of teaching him about the perimeter and giving him a lot of great advice and drilling him. He’s turned into a fine offensive player, as well as a defensive player. He’s not a one-trick pony kind of guy. He’s something else.”

Leonard on Friday had 32 points on 13 of 18 shooting and also played tremendously on defense.