Kawhi Leonard doesn’t do celebrations.
Not even when there’s almost $100 million involved?
Not even when there’s almost $100 million involved.
The 24-year-old signed a massive extension with the San Antonio Spurs this past summer, one worth nearly $95 million over the next five years. And when he finally put pen to paper on said deal, well, he reacted as you would expect him, a stone-cold assassin prone to soulless blank stares, to react.
Per Dan McCarney of the San Antonio-Express News:
The answer you'd absolutely expect, on whether Leonard celebrated re-upping for almost $100 million: "No, not at all."
— Dan McCarney (@danmccarneySAEN) October 5, 2015
Shocker.
But, seriously, he could’ve cracked a smile or something. I mean, that’s a lot of money. A ton of money. How he failed to at least swim in an infinity pool filled with dollar bills is beyond me.
Remember, this extension was a long time coming. The Spurs didn’t hammer out an agreement with him ahead of last year’s Oct. 31 deadline. Doing so would have cost them the flexibility necessary to sign that guy LaMarcus Aldridge. Waiting kept Leonard’s cap hit down, cutting it basically in half of what it is now, allowing them to engage in minimal dollars-finagling before offering Aldridge a deal. They were then able to go over the salary cap and re-sign Leonard, since they owned his Bird rights.
So, you know, there was a little bit of a process involved. Once Leonard finally came out the other side more than $90 million richer, it would have been reasonable to assume he celebrated, even if it was just a smile, or a half-smile, or him thinking about smiling. But no. He probably signed his deal silently, offering his thanks with a brief, abrupt nod in Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford’s direction, before strolling out of the room to do whatever it is he does in his spare time.
This isn’t to say that Leonard isn’t happy about his deal. He acknowledges that much:
Leonard on the significant of his recent extension: "I'm going to be able to play for five more years (in NBA). That makes me happy."
— Dan McCarney (@danmccarneySAEN) October 5, 2015
Who knows, maybe if the Spurs win another championship next season Leonard will smile again. Maybe he’ll break out in song and dance in celebration. Maybe he’ll throw Patty Mills on top of his shoulders and run around San Antonio making helicopter noises.
Or maybe he’ll stay forever Kawhi: expressionless, in a “He’s well worth $90-plus million” sort of way.
