For a player who came into the league as young and raw as Meyers Leonard, there is no such thing as a breakout game. He's a long term project and a work in progress. There will be good games, bad games, mediocre games and DNP-CDs. Expect inconsistency, but as long as the overall trend is positive, I'm fine with that.
But then, when it comes to Meyers Leonard, I've been a realist since day one. I knew when we drafted him, he was very young, very raw, very inexperienced and at least 3 to 4 years away from being a respectable NBA player. In other words, my expectations have always been realistic. The good news is I'm clearly seeing positive forward progress these last three games. First, he's playing meaningful minutes in close games against top notch competition - not just garbage time minutes against other scrubs in blowout victories.
Most folks on this board thought Joel Freeland was worthless last season, that he looked every bit as lost, uncomfortable and clueless as Leonard. In some ways, especially on offense, he looked even worse than Leonard. Given Freeland's more advanced age and several seasons of professional experience in Europe, I was more disappointed in Freeland last season than Leonard. After all, we'd been told that JoelFreeland was the best big man outside of the NBA. But, look at the remarkable improvement Freeland has made in just one off season of hard work. To most in this forum, Freeland went from lost cause to fan favorite in a matter of six months. I recognized the improvement in Freeland, his vastly improved interior defense and rebounding early in the preseason and picked him as my Cult Hero before the season started.
And guess what, I'm starting to see the same type improvement with Meyers Leonard. Oh sure, he still makes the occasional boneheaded play - a "rookie" mistake. I know he's not technically a rookie anymore, but he is still very inexperienced, very young, still adjusting to his body and learning the NBA game. But overall, I'm seeing a lot more good than bad from Leonard these days and that's a clear step in the right direction. I almost posted something about Leonard's progress after the Clippers game, but I get tired of the haters constantly shitting all over this kid, no matter what he does. But haters are always gonna hate. It's what they do and helps them feel good about themselves.
I first noticed in the NOP game that Meyers was much more active when rebounding, especially on the defensive end. He was much more focused and alert and rather than just standing around hoping the ball bounced his way he was actively pursuing rebounds and chasing down loose balls. Same thing, only even better against the Clippers and Heat. I also noticed some very Freelandesque defensive progress. He is getting much better position and like Freeland is going straight up with arms fully extended. That foul call on him against DeAndre Jordan was complete bullshit. If you watched the replay, Leonard played prefect defense on that play. He went straight up with arms fully extended, as he's allowed to do (and supposed to do) and Jordan swung his arm into Leonard. It should have been a non-call. Leonard altered the shot and prevented the easy field goal. He did what he was supposed to do - protect the rim. And, since Jordan missed both free throws, even though it was a bogus call, Leonard was successful and prevented an easy two points by playing proper defense.
I know the sample size is extremely small, but the stats (what we have) back up what I'm seeing with my eyes. Leonard is currently averaging 11.2 PTS/36 and 13.1 REB/36 (highest on the team). His PER = 14.8 and his TRB% is 19.8, again highest on the team and approaching elite level rebounding. His TS% of .611 is excellent. His ORTg (132 - highest on the team), DRTg (104 - tied for best on the team) and WS/48 (.187 - highest on the team) are all outstanding. Again, I recognize these numbers are all based on an extremely small sample size and will moderate over time as his PT increases, but it does show that he is being productive in the limited, but meaningful minutes he's playing.
Most importantly, I've seen significant progress in the two areas most critics say Leonard needs to improve the most- defense and rebounding. I've seen it with my eyes and the numbers back it up. He's a few months behind Joel Freeland, but he's learning the same things now that Freeland learned over the summer. At this point, rebounding and good position defense are second nature for Freeland. You can count on him to give you steady, solid, if unspectacular play, night in and night out. Leonard still looks like he needs to think about what he's supposed to do, but the good news is he's thinking about and doing the right things more and more. Eventually, it will become second nature to him like it has to Freeland.
Sure, he'll still make some dumb plays and have bad games, but if this type of overall progress continues, Leonard will become a solid rotation player and because he's younger, taller, more athletic and has better offensive skills, he will eventually become an even better version of the player Joel Freeland has become. Given how little Leonard has actually played this season, his progress these last three games is ahead of where I would expect it to be. He's obviously working hard in practice. His coach has noticed and is rewarding him with increased playing time. Good for him. I hope his increased role will inspire him to continue to work hard and get better.
BNM
