Los Angeles Clippers star Kawhi Leonard may not have been able to close the season out healthy, but that doesn’t take away from what was another spectacular regular season for the two-time NBA Finals MVP.
This week, his stellar play was officially recognized when the league announced both the All-NBA Teams as well as the All-Defensive teams. Leonard was named to the 2023-24 All-NBA Second Team, along with New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis, and Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant.
This season marked Kawhi Leonard’s sixth All-NBA selection and his third as a Second Team member.
Making the All-NBA First Team this year is Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets, Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder
Making the All-NBA Third Team this year is LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, Domantas Sabonis of the Sacramento Kings, Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors, and Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers.
Kawhi Makes History
With his sixth All-NBA selection, Kawhi Leonard joins an exclusive group of NBA superstardom. Leonard became the 14th player in NBA history to be named to six All-NBA selections and seven All-Defensive teams. The Clippers forward joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul, Tim Duncan, Hakeem Olajuwon, John Havlicek, David Robinson, Kevin Garnett, Gary Payton, Scottie Pippen, Walt Frazier, and Jason Kidd as the only players in the league’s 78-year history to reach the feat.
All of the players above were also named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team and, outside of Chris Paul, are all Hall-of-Famers. Given the illustrious careers of both Paul and Leonard, those two will likely go into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall-of-Fame shortly after they elect to retire.
In his second year coming off the ACL surgery and first following the meniscus surgery, Kawhi Leonard averaged 23.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.6 steals per game for the Clippers in 68 appearances. He did so while shooting a career-high from the field and the second best mark from three.
Leonard is entering a new three-year, $151 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers next season. It remains to be seen if his previous running mates — Paul George and James Harden — can negotiate deals to rejoin him on the Clippers next season.