Spurs' ideal Mount Rushmore of the 21st century must leave off Kawhi Leonard

Deciding who is on a team's Mount Rushmore is a fun exercise. It's even more interesting when you're restricted by parameters like time. Bleacher Report put forth a list for every team deciding which players belong, but the caveat was that it only went for guys who played in the year 2000 and beyond. It would have been so easy for the Spurs without that guideline, but here we are.

The first three are still extremely easy. Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili are the obvious choices. There's no debate worthy of having with anyone who tries to say otherwise, and they wisely chose the Big 3. But they placed Kawhi Leonard in the fourth spot, and that's just not something Spurs fans would abide.

Leonard's unceremonious exit ruined any possibility of being looked upon as some sort of legend in San Antonio. Only players with that sort of gravitas get the pleasure of consideration for a spot on the team's Mount Rushmore. The Klaw doesn't get that, but that still leaves a problem.

The Spurs don't have many legitimate options for a fourth

David Robinson didn't play in the 2000s enough to put him up there, so as beloved as he is, he's out. However, if there were no guidelines at all, he'd be an easy choice for the fourth pick. But since he's not a reasonable selection here, we move onward.

Patty Mills is one of the biggest fan favorites in the last decade-plus, but you can't put a role player on Mount Rushmore. No matter how awesome he is as a person and how dynamic he was as a player, it would be a disservice to the mountain to place him next to the Big 3. That also means Boris Diaw is out. We need to look at the stars over the years.

So, if we take Dejounte Murray, LaMarcus Aldridge, or DeMar DeRozan into consideration, would any of them warrant a spot so highly regarded? I would say the obvious answer here is another firm no. So, quite honestly, the fans only have two choices here.

You either fudge the rules to place Coach Popovich on the mountain, or you leave a space reserved for Victor Wembanyama. There's no doubt that Wemby is going to become one of the all-time greats in the league, so he'll obviously be another Spurs legend. He's already started on that path after an explosive start to his career.

Every other franchise except maybe the Miami Heat is better off picking four players, but there was no sustained success in San Antonio without Pop. Nobody should have a problem with his place beside the Big 3. However, if you really want to be a stickler, give us another five years and then ask that question again, so we can choose Wemby.