Season 50, Game 55
San Antonio 110, Indiana 106
42-13, 2nd in the West

The Spurs might be relying too much on Kawhi Leonard.

There’s no doubt that Kawhi is the best player on the team; he might be the best player in the league. There comes a certain responsibility with that standing. The fortunes of the team should rest most prominently on his broad shoulders.

But there is a point of diminishing returns, and there is too much for one player to do. (See: Russell Westbrook, OKC.) Right now, Kawhi takes (and makes) more shots that anybody else; he controls the offense more than anybody else; he is one of the lynchpins of the defense; he plays the most minutes; he is responsible for the most important decisions.

It’s crazy to say this about a team that is 42-13, but he needs some help. Aldridge is slumping (though he continues to work hard in other areas of his game), unable to hit his shot reliably. Parker has morphed into a caretaker, only ‘exploding’ for small bursts of points every so often. Mills’ seems to be lagging a bit at this point in the season. Manu is no longer the threat he once was. Dedmon needs others to set him up. Green is best as a spot-up shooter (though the development of other parts of his offensive game have been better than expected). Gasol is out. Anderson is fine, but not good enough at any one thing. Simmons is streaky. Lee has been great this season, but part of that greatness is his very limited, niche role. Asking him to do more would give the team less.

That’s it. That’s the roster (outside of the young, end of bench players). When it all clicks, it’s great. When it doesn’t (as it hasn’t so often lately), it’s Kawhi pulling the team across the finish line.

The offense in particular has been really up and down lately. Mostly down. For the season, the Spurs still rank 5th in offensive efficiency. However, in the last 15 games, the team is ranked 23rd, right next to offensive powerhouses like the Knicks, the Lakers, and the Hornets.

I don’t know if there are any good answers. Gasol coming back should help. His shooting and offensive intelligence is really important for the starting unit. Plus, he puts everybody back in their best roles, particularly making the second unit rotations whole. Aldridge will likely find his stroke again. Hopefully Mills will find his legs.

Parker has been fine in his role, but the very nature of that role might be the cap on this team’s possibilities. Parker was always a pretty good playmaker and an incredible scorer. While his playmaking has gotten better (along with his corporate knowledge), his scoring ability has dipped considerably. If he is not elite at any one thing, I don’t know how much he helps the team. The problem is, he really doesn’t hurt the team, either. He just is.

Maybe that’s good enough for now while we wait out the Warriors. Murray is not ready now, and we need good to competent PG play in the meantime.

Maybe there is no good answer. Maybe you just put the players out there, and trust that they will do what they can do. I love Kawhi, and we’ve seen by himself he can make the team pretty special.

I’m just tired of watching him have to carry the team night in and night out.

The Spurs finish the East Coast swing of the RRT against Orlando on Wednesday night.

Go Spurs Go.