Kawhi Leonard, the most underrated, overrated player in the NBA. For the San Antonio Spurs, he’s as indispensable as the Big Three are, and has been rightly credited as so by earning Finals MVP for the 2013-2014 season. However, his stats are extremely underwhelming for a player who’s consistently ranked as a second-round pick. Also, the addition of LaMarcus Aldridge over the offseason didn’t help.

Last season, Leonard participated in just 64 of 82 games, playing an average of 31.8 minutes per. In that time, he put up 16.5 points per game along with 7.2 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks. Those numbers aren’t necessarily poor, but for a second-round pick who’s ranked up with Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard and Jimmy Butler, they don’t stand out.

After San Antonio’s unfortunate Game 7 loss to Chris Paul and the Los Angeles Clippers, rumors stirred, as they have the past few years, that we could’ve just seen Duncan and Ginobili's last game in the NBA. But, as always, they’ll return and dominate the league behind Coach Gregg Popovich. With their age though, Kawhi appeared to be set for a bigger role in the offense, facilitating most nights when the Big Three were resting. The marquee signing of ex-Portland Trail Blazer LaMarcus Aldridge crushed Leonard’s dream of becoming the focal point of Pop’s legendary offense. Now, he must share offensive opportunities with Aldridge, who is used to being the center of attention during his time with Portland.

Obviously, Kawhi doesn’t care that he’s sharing the floor with LA, since wins are more important than stats. But to us fantasy owners, Leonard’s hype following the end of last season trailed off, burying his draft stock where it always is, the second round.

There are positives to drafting Leonard despite his stats not screaming for attention amidst other top tier players. One is the lack of small forwards after the second round. In fantasy basketball, small forwards are like seniors on Kentucky’s basketball team, there really aren’t many. LeBron James and Kevin Durant mark the top two, and Paul George and Carmelo Anthony rank next although being extremely risky picks. Next is Jimmy Butler and Kawhi Leonard who, in most leagues, can also fit the shooting guard slot. After Rudy Gay and Draymond Green in the third round though, it’s not until Nicolas Batum, ranked 66th overall by ESPN, that a true small forward appears. There are a few in between that can play small forward in fantasy as their secondary position, like Gordon Hayward and Tyreke Evans, but neither put up solid small forward numbers on a nightly basis (points, rebounds, good percentages and strong defense).

Another benefit to drafting Leonard stems from San Antonio’s flawless offense. Kawhi doesn’t often see poor shooting games. If such is the case, the ball will be moved around to other players and he won’t see as many opportunities. This year’s lineup for the Spurs will have no shortage of scorers, so a poor start to the game could mean minimal production for Leonard. On the other hand, if he’s tanking your field goal percentage one night, only a few missed shots into the game he’ll cut his attempts down, allowing others to score. Fortunately for fantasy owners, while he may not be helping any categories those games, he isn’t hurting any either.

One issue with Kawhi that came to light last season was injury problems. He managed to avoid any major injuries throughout the 2013-2014 season, but suffered an assortment of minor ailments that sidelined him for several games. This last season, he only suffered one big injury, a torn ligament in his right hand. This sidelined him for the second half of December and the start of January, but didn’t cause any future problems after his return on January 16th. Heading into the upcoming year, fantasy owners shouldn’t worry much about him, as there’s a possibility he misses a few nights, but the same goes with everyone.

While Kawhi’s offensive production isn’t standout, averaging just 16 points and seven rebounds a night, his defensive abilities, nearly three steals and a block, help him maintain a second-round spot in this year’s fantasy draft. Also, he doesn’t hurt any categories, shooting 48 percent from the field, 35 percent from three, 80 percent from the line and only turning the ball over 1.5 times a game. It’s easy to miss out on a top tier small forward in the chaos of draft night, but Kawhi Leonard could be a steal if he manages to drop into the late second round or even the third round, considering you didn’t already pick a better small forward like Durant or LeBron.

Durability: B+

Overall Stats: B+

Consistency: A-

Mock Draft Ranking: #15