The San Antonio Spurs aren’t used to elite players asking to be traded out of the organization, but that’s the situation the team currently finds itself in after Kawhi Leonard’s latest demand.
Leonard reportedly wants to be traded, and one of the two Los Angeles teams, the Lakers or Clippers, supposedly is his preferred destination.
According to longtime NBA reporter Chris Sheridan, now with GetMoreSports.com, it isn’t a slam dunk that Leonard goes to sunny California in the immediate future.
“He is not going to Los Angeles … or any other destination in the Western Conference, sources are telling GetMoreSports.com,” Sheridan wrote Sunday.
Sheridan also added that Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich “would gladly take 75 cents on the dollar” for Leonard if it meant trading him out of the West — “even if that upsets Kawhi.”
“And even though the Leonard camp wants people to believe they are driving the leverage bus on this matter, they’re not.” Sheridan wrote. “Popovich is.”
The two obvious Eastern Conference suitors for Leonard are the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers. Both teams have valuable draft picks and young players to dangle in a trade, and Philly has the luxury of salary cap space. The Celtics are a championship caliber team with or without Leonard, and the 76ers would become one if they acquired an elite player like Leonard alongside rising stars Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid.
If Leonard really does want to play in Los Angeles and won’t commit to re-signing with an East team in 2019 when he’s eligible to become an unrestricted free agent, then it wouldn’t be smart for the Celtics, 76ers, or any other team in their conference to offer much of value for the former NBA Finals MVP. For example, giving up a young star like Jaylen Brown as part of a package for one year of Leonard doesn’t make a ton of sense for the C’s.
The Lakers, more than the Clippers, do have quality assets to give up for Leonard. L.A. doesn’t have any high draft picks, but young players Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball all have promise and multiple years left on their rookie contracts.
