The Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes seemed to be down to two teams — the Los Angeles Clippers and Toronto Raptors.
Leonard reportedly is “seriously considering” remaining with the Raptors after bringing the franchise their first championship and winning NBA Finals MVP. It also was reported that the star forward would be open to meetings with a number of other teams.
But what about the Los Angeles Lakers? Well, it does not seem like they are ready to watch Leonard sign with their cross-town rivals, and according to The New York Times’ Marc Stein, consider themselves in the hunt.
“The Lakers have believed for weeks — even before they acquired Anthony Davis — that they would factor into the Kawhi Leonard chase,” Stein tweeted Tuesday. “This has been widely billed as a two-team race between the Clippers and Toronto, but the Lakers’ chance to hush their skeptics is fast approaching.”
We don’t have to explain the magnitude of a LeBron James-Anthony Davis-Kawhi Leonard trio.
There obviously are some serious salary cap hurdles the Lakers would have to clear to obtain Leonard. But the Lakers seem desperate to right the ship after missing the playoffs last season. Signing Leonard in the same offseason that they acquired Davis would be about as big a splash as a team could ever make.
