After a thrilling Lakers-Clippers showdown, LeBron James gives unprecedented praise to Kawhi Leonard.
LeBron James has never been shy about giving flowers to the game's best players, and on Friday night he made it clear that Kawhi Leonard is near the top of that list.
After the Los Angeles Lakers held off the Los Angeles Clippers 125-122 at Crypto.com Arena, James took a moment in his postgame interview to talk about the man who nearly stole the game from his team.
Leonard finished with 31 points on the night before leaving with an ankle injury in the final minutes, and that performance left a lasting impression on LeBron even in a win.
LeBron Sounds Off On Kawhi
"Kawhi is awesome, man, he's the best, he's one of the best players ever," James said after the game.
James didn't stop there, making sure to shut down anyone who tries to use Leonard's injury history against him by saying he couldn't care less about the injuries.
He had nothing but great things to say about Kawhi and the type of basketball he's been playing over the last couple of months.
That tracks with the numbers, too, as Leonard is averaging 27.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.0 steals per game this season for the Clippers, and he's been even better since November, when the team started turning things around after their rough 6-21 start.
LeBron also brought up the 2024 Paris Olympics, saying he was disappointed when Leonard wasn't able to join Team USA after initially being selected to the roster.
"Listen, he had 31 points in 12 minutes, he's awesome, I could speak about him all night," James added about Leonard's All-Star Weekend explosion against Team World.
Two Legends, One City
LeBron and Kawhi have shared the city of Los Angeles for years now, and their respect for one another has only grown over time.
James finished Friday's game with 13 points and 11 assists for the Lakers, who improved to 34-21 on the season and sit as a top-six seed in the Western Conference alongside a new Big Three of Luka Doncic, LeBron, and Austin Reaves.
Leonard's Clippers fell to 27-29 with the loss but have been one of the best stories in the NBA this season after climbing out of that brutal early-season hole.
Much of that credit belongs to Kawhi who was originally snubbed from the All-Star Game despite putting up career-level scoring numbers.
The two stars have been linked together going back to the summer of 2019 when Leonard was a free agent and chose the Clippers over the Lakers, passing up the chance to team up with James and Anthony Davis.
What's Ahead
Friday's game was the final meeting of the regular season between the two Los Angeles teams, and the Lakers took the series split at two games apiece.
For James, now 41 years old and in his 22nd NBA season, averaging 21.7 points, 7.2 assists, and 5.7 rebounds on the year, moments like these are a reminder of how much he still appreciates the game and the players in it.
Leonard's health will be the thing to watch going forward after he left Friday's game with ankle soreness, but when he's on the court there might not be a more complete two-way player in the league.
That's something even LeBron James himself would agree with.