Kawhi Leonard has been letting Kevin Durant live in his head rent-free for years, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst. On an episode of his radio show The Hoop Collective, Windhorst relayed that the Raptors star is still upset over Durant calling him a system player after Leonard won the Finals with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014.
"I was talking to somebody about that, somebody who knows Kawhi. And I'm just going to give it the qualifier here that, who really knows Kawhi? I mean, very few, I mean very, very few people. Certainly I'm not saying that this is some sort of insight that is dazzling. But, from what I understand, when Kawhi heard that quote, that he was a system player, that it really, really pissed him off and that that's one of the things that you carry with him."
KD has since walked back his comments about Leonard being a product of Gregg Popovich's system in San Antonio. In 2016, Durant admitted that Leonard is not the same player as the one who won against the Heat.
"He's definitely grown as a player. He's not a system player. I know you guys like to throw that word, that term, around. But he's just grown so much as a player, a guy that can – I have to be locked in every play. He can shoot the mid-range. He can post up. He can shoot the 3. He can dribble. He's just grown so much as a player," he said. "Defensively, probably one of the best guys in the league. So, it's fun. It's fun when you get that matchup at the small forward. There's so many great guys, but he's one of the guys that’s in the top tier."
This tiff also matters because the Clippers are reportedly interested in both Durant and Leonard this offseason. So, if they end up on the same team, there might be some tension. Of course, Durant has his own teammates to worry about in 2018. He's probably going to have nightmares about DeMarcus Cousins for a while.
