Photo: Sporting News
After surviving a Cavaliers vs. Warriors Finals Part 4, NBA fans are hungry for another manic NBA off-season that'll hopefully bring great competition for the next regular season. Well folks, Kawhi Leonard has just put the icing on the off-season cake.
According to multiple sources on Friday, All-Star and former two-time Defensive Player of The Year wants out of San Antonio. Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowksi, Leonard want to be traded to Los Angeles, preferably the Lakers. Other teams that are looking to obtain Leonard include the Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns, New York Knicks, Sacramento Kings and Philadelphia 76ers.
Kawhi Leonard missed 73 regular season games due to a right quad injury. He has reportedly grown frustrated with how the Spurs organization handled his injury and feels the franchise has turned on him, questioning his future with the Spurs.
Leonard is eligible to receive a five-year, $219 million contract extension from the Spurs this summer. He can opt out of his current deal after next season and become a free agent in July 2019.
Leonard throughout his career has established himself as an elite player, looking to be the man to run the franchise post-Tim Duncan era. He averaged 25.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game in the 2016-2017 season. His freaky athleticism along with his tenacity and length makes him one of the best two way players and defenders in the NBA. He has molded well into Gregg Popovich X's and O's system where is he developed enough to move to a team that will cultivate well around him. While many teams are fighting to get a shot for Kawhi Leonard, there are 3 destinations that are the best options for Leonard if the cards are played right:
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers with Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Lebron James would be absolutely bonkers. Most NBA fans felt the same way when OKC developed a Big 3 with Russell Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony and George; however, they ended up getting knocked off the 1st round of the playoffs. The defensive repertoire of Leonard, along with the leadership of James, sharp-shooting of George along with young talent like Kyle Kuzma and Lonzo Ball will make a dangerous team who would possibly withstand the Warriors.
The biggest factor to making this possible is timing: both the Lakers and the Spurs have to reach a decision quick whether or not Kawhi will be traded before signing any free agents. The Lakers need to have as much cap space as possible in order to successfully get Leonard while making room for other players. Trading Loul Deng who has two years remaining on his 4-year/$72 million deal to the Spurs for Leonard will accumulate more cap space to surround Leonard with star talent.
Boston Celtics
Boston has showed the NBA that they are the next up-coming team to watch out for, competing in the Conference Finals without Kyrie Irving. The young athleticism of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier makes Boston a desirable fit for Leonard who can be the center fold of the team to elevate them even more. What makes Boston a option is their 2019 first-round picks from the Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzles and Los Angeles Clippers that can attract the Spurs for a option to rebuild. The only hurdle is making the salaries work without giving up one of Boston's max players (Gordon Hayward and Al Horford). A core of Irving, Leonard, Hayward, Tatum, Brown and Horford coached by Brad Stevens puts them at the top of the East to compete for a title.
San Antonio Spurs
Photo: China Daily
While the trust between Leonard and the Spurs seems to be broken, the Spurs can still play hardball here. Though Leonard has plenty of leverage— not resigning with any teams he's traded to — San Antonio reportedly is not in a rush to make a move. Leonard will most likely not spend another year on the sideline. San Antonio will make all the major moves— whether increasing the max deal or getting Lebron James— to keep Leonard. Leonard has expressed that he doesn't necessarily care about the money, but that's a lot of money to turn down.
All NBA teams have a legitimate chance to get Kawhi Leonard. Leonard has the ability to be the center-piece in any lineup and make players better around him. The biggest factors are timing and cap space. Teams have to make deals and decision quick while making sure they have reasonable cap space to land an elite player in Leonard and other star talent. Kawhi wanting out of San Antonio along with the awaiting decision of Lebron James makes a off-season you can't miss.
Photo: Hoops Hype