Kawhi Leonard might be the most disliked player in the San Antonio Spurs' fanbase, and the Silver and Black were able to get another jab after the Los Angeles Clippers released Chris Paul.
There might not be anyone that fans of the San Antonio Spurs dislike more than Kawhi Leonard.
Derek Fisher and Zaza Pachulia come to mind, but Fisher's last-second shot and Pachulia's unfortunate close-out were the result of them doing their jobs. Can that really be held against them?
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Kawhi Leonard's exodus from the Spurs, however, was the result of a blatant refusal for him to play. In 2018, he was dealing with a calf injury. The Spurs, in the midst of a window of contention, wanted him back. Leonard and his camp insisted that he was not able to play.
Tony Parker suffered the same injury earlier in his career, insisting that his was "one hundred times worse," and he and the Spurs grew impatient with Leonard.
"I could have gone anywhere, but I trust my Spurs doctors," Parker said in March 2018.
The Spurs wanted to know if Leonard was as bought-in as they were. He couldn't handle it, and he demanded a trade.
Of course, he found immediate success with the Toronto Raptors, winning a title before signing with the Los Angeles Clippers. In Hollywood, injuries piled up. He's remained elite, although he has long been totally unreliable.
On the court, he boasts the talents that the Clippers can build around. In the locker room and behind closed doors, he isn't a leader. The Spurs were the first team to find that out.
"Kawhi was a great player, but he wasn't a leader or anything," Gregg Popovich said in 2018. "Manu and Patty were the leaders. Kawhi's talent will always be missed, but leadership wasn't his deal."
Leonard said Pop's comments "didn't matter."
That was seven years ago. Why do we care now?
Earlier this week, the Clippers waived veteran and franchise legend Chris Paul. Apparently, his winning attitude was too much for certain players.
“Paul has been vocal in holding management, coaches, and players accountable, which the team felt became disruptive,” reported insider Shams Charania. “Specifically: Ty Lue was not on speaking terms with Paul for several weeks.”
Between Leonard's track record of not being able to be held accountable and James Harden's past disagreements with Paul, it's safe to say that it was not a match made in heaven.
Now, Paul is one of the most tenacious and reliable players in NBA history. Adding him to the Clippers seemed to be a good call. After all, last year's young Spurs were able to find success, even thrive, with Paul chewing them out.
Why couldn't the Clippers?
Maybe it's becayuse the franchise is soft, or at least attracts soft players.