NBA Playoffs 2019: Kawhi Leonard earns Player of the Day

Scott Rafferty

NBA Playoffs 2019: Kawhi Leonard earns Player of the Day image

The 2019 NBA Playoffs are heating up!

Every day from now until the end of the postseason, our NBA.com Staff will bring you one top performer following the completion of the playoff games on that day.

You'll be able to see the best performance and three honourable mentions from each day, while also having access to all prior "Player of the Night" files, as we see who can tally the most honours these playoffs.

Today's player of the day is...

Kawhi Leonard

Team's result: Toronto Raptors 107, Orlando Magic 85

Stat line: 34 points (12-20 FG, 2-5 3PT, 8-9 FT), 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals, 2 assists

Leonard bounced back from a miserable Game 3, in which he missed 14 of his 19 shot attempts and committed six turnovers, with a game-high 34 points in Toronto's Game 4 victory.

Leonard also got it done defensively in the 22-point win, blocking two shots and coming up with two steals.

This is the second time Leonard has been named our Player of the Day in these playoffs, the first being after Game 2 when he scored 37 points.

Honourable Mentions

Klay Thompson

Team's result: Golden State Warriors 113, LA Clippers 105

Stat line: 32 points (12-20 FG, 6-9 3PT, 2-2 FT), 1 rebound

Thompson stole the show in the first half of Game 4 with 27 points. He made 10 of his 14 shot attempts through two quarters, including five of his six 3-point attempts.

“When Klay gets going like that, it just fuels the whole bench,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said afterwards.

Thompson cooled off in the second half, but the Warriors still got the win to take a 3-1 lead in their first-round series with the Clippers.

Kevin Durant

Team's result: Golden State Warriors 113, LA Clippers 105

Stat line: 33 points (12-21 FG, 3-6 3PT, 6-6 FT), 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal

Whereas the first half of this game belonged to Thompson, the second half belonged to Durant. He scored 14 of his game-high 33 points after halftime to prevent the Clippers from making another comeback.

Durant was the only player on the Warriors to score in double figures in the final two quarters.

CJ McCollum


Team's result: Portland Trail Blazers 111, Oklahoma City Thunder 98

Stat line: 27 points (10-20 FG, 5-9 3PT, 2-2 FT), 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal

Speaking of strong second halves, it was McCollum who took over down the stretch of Portland's Game 4 win over Oklahoma City.

McCollum scored 13 points in the final frame on 4-for-5 shooting from the field and 3-for-4 from 3-point range to secure the win.

McCollum's backcourt teammate Damian Lillard chipped in with 24 points in the game, but did so on only 7-for-19 shooting from the field.

Previous winners

April 14 - Stephen Curry

April 15 - Giannis Antetokounmpo

April 16 - Lou Williams

April 17 - Kawhi Leonard

April 18 - James Harden

April 19 - Ben Simmons

April 20 - Russell Westbrook

April 21 - Joel Embiid

Scott Rafferty

Scott Rafferty Photo

 

Scott Rafferty is an experienced NBA journalist who first started writing for The Sporting News in 2017. There are few things he appreciates more than a Nikola Jokic no-look pass, Klay Thompson heat check or Giannis Antetokounmpo eurostep. He's a member of the NBA Global team.