Kawhi Leonard and the Spurs' Perpetual Succession Plan

There is a very traditional set of rules for great rookie players who enter the league. They're often sent to franchises with a history of recent failure on the court, hence, explaining why they're in a position to draft that player in the first place. Additionally, the player is usually expected to make an immediate impact, eventually assuming the full responsibility of carrying the team out of the abyss of mediocrity. The Big Three of the Heat are a great example of that path: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh each assumed the mantle in Cleveland, Miami and Toronto, respectively. After varying degrees of success, they decided it made more sense to do it together instead.

On the other side are the Spurs, who always do things a little differently, both in the past and presently. When Tim Duncan was drafted first overall by the team in 1997, he joined a contender led by franchise center David Robinson and a supporting cast that included Sean Elliott and Avery Johnson. The Spurs landed in the lottery because Robinson broke his foot in December and ended up playing just six games in a '96 season that ended with 20 wins. The Spurs had been perennial contenders in the three prior seasons, winning at least 55 games each year.

Without having to be the focal point on a rebuilding team, Duncan was, instead, allowed to develop individually in a winning environment, while forgoing the pressure of being The Man. In just his second year in the league, Duncan was instrumental in getting the Spurs over the hump, as both he and Robinson led the franchise to their first title. By the time the Spurs won another one in 2003, Robinson was at the end of his career; Duncan had become The Man, well on his way to becoming the best power forward, if not all-time, then at least for this generation.

On Tuesday, the Spurs challenged the idea of perfection on a basketball floor, starting the game 19 of 21 from the field. The star of the show was 22-year-old forward Kawhi Leonard, who didn't miss in the first quarter on his way to a personal career-high 29 points. In the same way Duncan was given the opportunity to ease his way into the league, Leonard is in his fourth third season with the Spurs and is the player everyone now expects to leap to superstardom. Meanwhile, he has continued improving his game while already competing in his second NBA Finals.

While Duncan, along with Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, remain the pillars of this Spurs roster, the Spurs are contending for championships in the present as well as preparing the franchise for the next era. If it all works out, Leonard will be the centerpiece of their succession plan. Leonard was taken 15th overall in the 2011 draft, falling out of the lottery after teams expressed concerns about his injury history and inability to shoot.

His shooting has improved dramatically since his college days, and he's already become one of the best two-way players in the league. In the first two games of the Finals, he scored 18 points total and battled foul trouble throughout. It was a disappointing result, if only because the expectations for Leonard are so great. When he's knocking down shots with regularity and being a terror on the defensive end as he was in Game 3, it's easy to see why we expect this from Leonard on a nightly basis. It was almost as if we skipped the development part of the narrative on Tuesday and jumped right to the section where Leonard's a top-15 player in this league.

While the Spurs look to lay claim to being the best team in the post-Jordan era with their fifth championship, many individuals on this team—Leonard included—are merely seeking their first ring. While he's enjoyed an abundant amount of success in just three seasons, he's also dealt with the heartbreak of losing a 2-0 lead to Oklahoma City and watching Ray Allen's memorable championship-saving shot in last year's Game 6 that wrested the title away from the Spurs. Pain, along with success, is relative in this regard.

Winning championships is a difficult task for any franchise, in any particular sport. This task is especially difficult in the NBA. What's even harder is having a succession plan in place for when your superstar retires or decides to go elsewhere. The Spurs—twice now—have pushed back against the cyclical nature of the league that demands a long and often unproductive process of rebuilding from the ground up. We've seen it before, and we're seeing it in Cleveland since LeBron's departure, and we'll probably see it happen in Los Angeles as Kobe Bryant's career winds down.

From Robinson, they were able to pass the torch onto Duncan, and now, it appears more and more like Leonard is ready to be the next in line, which is why I laughed to myself last night when I heard Jeff Van Gundy talk about appreciating the "unique humility" of the Spurs. I found humor in the implication that this quality about San Antonio was something that was fleeting, something that should be appreciated before it's gone—before we know it.

With Kawhi Leonard positioned to lead the way very soon, the Spurs are well positioned to carry that humility into the next generation. If performances like Game 3 quickly become the norm for Leonard, he can carry the Spurs into another era of success and championship contention.

The Spurs are both two wins away from a title and have a first-row seat to witness a star-in-waiting realize his full potential. It's incredible, indeed.