Kawhi Leonard: Spurs president slammed over 'spiteful' comments
KAWHI LEONARD was called out by his former president, Gregg Popovich, for not being enough of a leader, though one pundit has slammed the comments as ‘spiteful’.
The Toronto Raptors star joined the franchise in the summer from the San Antonio Spurs.
His move was a trade, with DeMar DeRozan going the opposite way.
However, Leonard was not a popular figure in San Antonio, as proven by Popovich's quotes.
Speaking to reporters in the US, Popovich said that Leonard was “never a leader” for the Spurs.
However, Tas Melas of The Starters podcast insisted that Popovich was still angry about Leonard leaving the team.
“This his Greg Popovic being a little spiteful, to me,” he said.
“He’s being a little vengeful.
“He was asked ‘Manu [Ginobili] retired, Kawhi Leonard isn’t on your team, has Paddy Mills taken on that leadership role on your team?’, and he said ‘Kawhi Leonard was never a leader’.
Kawhi Leonard celebrates Danny Green's game-winner
“Did he need to bring Kawhi into it? No, not whatsoever.
”He could have just said ‘Paddy Mills is a great leader’.
“He didn’t need to mention anything about Kawhi.
“I think this is just Greg getting something back from last season.”
His co-host, Leigh Ellis, agreed.
He pointed out that last year, Leonard was a leader for the Spurs.
“There’s a certain animosity there,” he said.
“He rarely ever comes out and talks about players who move on, certainly in a negative light.
“I think now he’s just come out and given him a little jab.
“If you’re a good player, and Kawhi is a MVP-canditate player, you automatically have those leadership qualities.”