MIAMI – The shy, reticent California kid responsible for transforming the San Antonio Spurs, delivering a gassed dynasty its second wind, had come to the franchise with brazen strength, a stout spirit and a flawed shot. Hours after the NBA draft three years ago, the Spurs hurried Kawhi Leonard through his "Welcome to the NBA" news conference and out onto the practice court with shooting coach Chip Engelland.

As the clock lurched toward midnight on July 1, Engelland worked to change Leonard's release point, reshaping his shot and retraining his mind to trust what suddenly felt so awkward. Time was running out together, and soon the Spurs would leave a 20-year-old to administer his own reclamation. No coaches, no calls, no contact.

"He had come in, worked with Chip for three days and then – the lockout happened," Spurs general manager R.C. Buford told Yahoo Sports on Tuesday night. "There was intention in the [shooting] prescription given him. It was not just drill work."

Five months passed, the lockout ended and it didn't take long for the Spurs to realize Leonard had dutifully done the work asked of him and returned a different basketball player. In the Spurs' wildest dreams, they imagined Leonard as a relentless rebounder and a determined defender. Yet once Leonard developed a shot, he had a chance to be a star. Most of all, the Spurs had a chance to retool the Big Three, supplement the supporting cast and make a run again.

View photos Spurs coach Gregg Popovich urged Kawhi Leonard to be more aggressive in Game 3. (NBAE/Getty Images) More

Leonard had 29 points, two steals and two blocked shots in a telltale 111-92 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Leonard did a magnificent job on LeBron James, holding him to 22 points and playing a part in disrupting him into seven turnovers. No one could see this Spurs resurgence coming on Tuesday night, the way no one could see Leonard becoming this kind of a star, this kind of a franchise-changer in the winter of Tim Duncan's and Manu Ginobili's careers.

Leonard is the reason the Spurs are chasing championships again. He changed everything for the Spurs. He gave them size and strength and athleticism to partner with his calculating, cunning basketball mind. Eventually, he gave them a startling offensive game to go with his stifling defense. Against Oklahoma City and Miami, he gave them a defender for Kevin Durant and LeBron James. Yes, Kawhi Leonard gave the Spurs a chance again.

"You could've never predicted this," Buford said.

No one ever saw him coming on draft night three years ago. Before that draft, Leonard had to slow down his workout schedule with an Achilles and ankle injury, forcing him to skip a late June session with the Milwaukee Bucks. Between the poor shooting and those injury doubts, there was an uneasiness of teams on draft night. This gave the Spurs a chance.

Around 3 o'clock on draft day in 2011, Buford called Leonard's agent, Brian Elfus, in his New York hotel room. San Antonio had done a thorough job of scouting and researching Leonard, but this was the first time Elfus had heard directly from Buford on him. He had been projected too high of a draft pick for the Spurs to be able to bring him into town for a workout.

"How's he feeling?" Buford asked Elfus. The agent informed Buford that he had taken Leonard to a specialist in the city that day, and his Achilles and ankle had fully checked out. Buford had history with Elfus, the Spurs had a solid doctor's physical on Leonard and soon Buford was back shopping guard George Hill for a lottery pick.

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