It showcases they have done some leetcode. Or it showcases they can write code when someone is looking over your shoulder. There are company cultures where these skills are needed.

Companies that don't fall into a culture like this are indeed deluded.

I would do the following:

1. Write a tax calculator that reads in data from a CSV, or a similar question to showcase programming ability.

2. Do a small paid project. If it was good enough, hire them. If it wasn't, then give feedback and do another one in a week, tell them to learn as much about the topic as possible.

3. Do a small paid project a week later. If their learning agility is high, then hire them still.