It’s 3:45 p.m., nearly 3 1/2 hours before the Trail
Blazers’ recent game against Phoenix at the Moda Center.
Only one player is already out shooting — Portland center Meyers Leonard.
Working with assistant coach Nate Tibbetts, Leonard roams the perimeter, taking jump shot after jump shot. The 7-1 second-year pro sinks 10 in a row from the corner. He knocks down 12 straight from the elbow. He makes 15 consecutive shots from the free throw line. Then he drains 20 of 25 3-point attempts...
“There’s a misnomer going around that Meyers doesn’t work hard,” says Kim Hughes, the assistant coach who spends the most time with Leonard. “He puts in as much time as anybody.”