Exponential Odd Ball – Kawhi Leonard

I offer the following as a POSSIBLE explanation of why Kawhi Leonard does what he does. Even Mr. Leonard would not be to this place at this point in his life, as the awareness of his attributes is not fundamental to the exercise of those attributes. Mr. Leonard may be an exponential odd ball.

First, he may be a highly intuitive learner/practitioner of life. If so, he has spent his life trusting his intuitive reaction to every moment of life he has faced. People of that ilk never learn not to trust their instinct. By this process everything they do is without the delay, miniscule as it is, caused by conscious thought devoted to checking their intuitive reaction before allowing it to be exercised.  Hold that for a minute (or two).

Second, he may have a high talent when it comes to spatial awareness. Spatial awareness is something that is tested for in IQ tests, so his “permanent record” from schooling may give a hint of this second odd ball trait. Oh, I forgot. Highly intuitive people, those who have not ever learned to doubt their intuitive reaction simply because that reaction has always proved to be valid, are well less than 20% of society. For high acuity in spatial awareness, we are talking at least the second separation value of ten percent of society, and I am making a generous allowance, as both of those percentages are likely well less than I have ascribed.

Third, he may be a lateral thinker. Now here is the real separator if he is such. The term Lateral Thinking was coined by someone in the sixties. If you look it up you will eventually come across a statement to the effect that the normal human brain does not operate laterally. It seems that all of mankind operates in direct thinking, especially when addressing a problem that is in front of them.

Fourth, and more obvious to the general public: He is strong, tall, fast a foot, has big hands and a big wing span. Even in the NBA, those combination of attributes are recognized as a small percentage of the participants, and those guys are the cream of the crop against which to measure such things.

The physical attributes are the subject of much discussion by those who earn a living through such discussion. The “direct” thinking of people lead them to such a discussion and a certain level of understanding allows them to put Mr. Leonard into a box they can understand. However, there is a clear bewilderment from even the most seasoned analyzer when they get to a point of conclusion. Heck, the Greek Freak is taller, just as quick and with other physical attributes that have been recognized so as to set him aside and above all other participants in the NBA, except that he was clearly tempered by the defense of Mr. Leonard. Everyone saw it, the numbers show it, but the direct thinking mechanism of humans do not allow for the complete understanding. If any of you readers played a sport at a relatively high level you may have run into a player, even as a kid, who surprised everyone else in the neighborhood, and who never seemed to recognize the talent they have.

When you start with Mr. Leonard’s physical abilities, then add the trust of his intuition, you see that his reaction time is shorter than others. At the level he plays, even a small reduction of reaction time is a big factor. When that reaction time presumes the accurate read of spatial awareness, especially in basketball were there are multiple people who can affect the interaction that influences the relationship of everyone, the analysis performed quicker and more accurately gives great advantage. If he has the innate ability such that his brain works laterally, instead of the direct reaction appreciated by everyone else, then the physical application of all of his talents makes it look like he is on a different plane because he “sees” alternatives and applies solutions in his real time, which is slight blinks ahead of everyone else. Hence the mystery.

Perhaps he is, in fact, an Exponential Odd Ball.

The last thought: if Kawhi is this person he has been so his entire life. As a result, he would not have articulated to himself why he is who he is. He would likely have not perceived that he was different than everyone else, merely wondering, from time to time, why others didn’t “get it” as he has. His outward appearance in reaction to things seems to show this, which reaction is noted as different, but not understood, by those who comment about what he appears to be up to. The thoughts I put down here would allow for him to “see” it for the first time, but it would still evade the general population and even those who are familiar with sport analysis. That is the story of EOB.