This young basketball player, Kawhi Leonard, born on June 29, 1991, is currently a junior striker in the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before his fame, he was active in college basketball, playing two seasons for the San Diego State Aztecs. In his second year, the budding basketball star was a consensus of the All-American second team.
During his first season in San Antonio, the rising star was named the NBA All-Rookie First Team, which was ranked 15th overall in the 2011 NBA draft. In 2014, when the basketball player made waves with the Spurs, he won an NBA championship and was subsequently named the most valuable player in the NBA finals. He was NBA Defensive Player of the Year twice in a row and also made the All-NBA First Team, first in 2016 and then again the following year.
His Father’s Death
The famous basketball player was born as the youngest child of Mark and Kim Leonard. He has four older siblings, who are all girls. His father, Mark, owns and operates a car wash in Compton, where he was killed by a gunshot on January 18, 2008.
According to Detective Frank Salerno of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, he was not arrested and no motive for the murder was found. It’s been over a decade now, and the Leonard family has stopped demanding updates from authorities as the killer appears to have vanished into thin air.
In the period following his father’s death, his friends, teammates, coaches, and family rallied around the junior striker and comforted him. According to coach Tim Sweeney, they tried their best to be there for him, but then his performance was not what it once was, he was a teenager struggling with one of the most painful experiences imaginable.
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Kawhi Leonard Wife (Kishele Shipley), Girlfriend, and Daughter
The larger-than-life basketball player is in a relationship with the beautiful Kishele Shipley, who holds a degree in public administration from San Diego State University. She graduated in 2012 and worked as a human resources specialist in San Diego.
The couple reportedly met when Kawhi Leonard was still in San Diego, but after being selected by the Spurs, Kishele moved with him to Texas in December 2014. When a lady now agrees to move for the sake of a relationship, it means total commitment.
Due to the lack of information available to the media, one can suspect that the basketball star is trying to protect his girlfriend from the eyes of the press, but when a girl is in love with an athlete of Kawhi’s rank, there is definitely no hiding place.
So here’s what we dug up on Kishele’s background: She was born on April 10th, 1989 in San Diego, which makes her a few years older than her boyfriend. Her parents are Cathy Marie Shipley and Kenneth Shipley, she has two sisters – Kasandra and Kenisha.
Recently Kishele has become interested in home decoration and design; she has developed many interior design ideas which she saves on her Pinterest account. Does this mean that she has big plans for their future home together?
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Anyway, Kishele’s status in her boyfriend’s life changed from girlfriend to baby mum in 2016 when she gave birth to her daughter. Kawhi’s status also changed, for he not only became a father but also became engaged. In his opinion, there is a good feeling to have a child.
Although it is common knowledge that Kawhi Leonard and Kishele have a lot to do with each other and live together with their daughter, the status of their relationship is not clear to many. Although many consider Kishele to be the basketball player’s wife, she is described from several sides only as o the man’s partner.
Height and Body Measurements
You can’t talk about giant basketball players without mentioning the junior striker of the San Antonio Spurs, who you can confidently call the giant of basketball. Kawhi stands at a great height of 6 feet 7 inches and weighs 104 kg (230 lb).
Details of the other body measurements have yet to be confirmed, but the reference is often made to the hands of the great man, which are described as gigantic.