Spurs' Leonard fueled by data obsession: 'Kawhi loves the analytics'

Kawhi Leonard is a San Antonio Spur through and through.

The soft-spoken All-Star starter, 2014 Finals MVP, reigning Defensive Player of the Year, and non-Steph Curry division MVP front-runner has obliterated every reasonable projection for him since he was taken 15th overall (and traded straight up for point guard George Hill) out of San Diego State in 2011.

The Spurs, though, have always managed to wring better-than-expected production out of their players, often by being ahead of the curve in terms of advanced analytics and data collection. As ESPN's Tom Haberstroh reports, Leonard's devotion to both production-based analytics and biometric data have played a major role in his ascendant career to date.

"Kawhi loves the analytics side, loves to look at everything, wants to know," Randy Shelton, Leonard's strength and conditioning coach at SD State, told Haberstroh. "That's the beauty about it."

After Leonard missed 18 games during his sophomore season with quad tendinitis near his left knee, the Spurs sent him to the P3 Applied Sports Science institute, where computers and wearable technology spit out all manner of data about an athlete's movement and the overall performance of his or her body. It helped the budding superstar develop an even greater appreciation for the nuances of physical efficiency.

"They focus on trying to balance out your body," Leonard said. "You don't train there. I learned more about the body."

From Haberstroh:

His transformation was underway, and Leonard attacked it with zeal. Shelton, who works out the forward almost every summer in San Diego, says the practice court is where Leonard comes alive, morphing from the quietest player on the NBA's most media-averse team to a 230-pound blabbermouth: Why are we doing this? Where are we supposed to go with this? How's my form? Are my feet right? Is my weight distribution OK? How does my back look?

Of course, simply being invested in the data and the process can't turn someone into a Leonard-like force of nature.

Said Shelton: "You gotta have hips like Kawhi."