Miami Heat: Kawhi Leonard and Pat Riley’s final triumph

The transaction

On the face of it, this seems like a monumental task.

A member of the All-NBA First Team each of the past two seasons during which time he finished in the top three in MVP voting, Leonard represents the entire package as a player. Already a two-time winner of the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award, Leonard has transformed his game at both ends of the floor to present as arguably the premier two-way player in the game today.

Not to mention, Leonard was also named NBA Finals MVP during the Heat’s 4-1 trouncing at the hands of the Spurs in 2014.

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However, three factors work in the Heat’s favor. Firstly, keeping a disgruntled star rarely works in favor of the franchise. Granted, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich was able to reason with his other All-Star, LaMarcus Aldridge, this past offseason following Aldridge’s request for a trade. The difference in Leonard’s case is the length of time this has dragged out, and the frequency in reporting of his relationship with the franchise.

Secondly, Leonard has just two years remaining on his current deal, but with the final season being a player option, this essentially means he will be a free agent in the summer of 2019. As anyone would be aware, the less time a player has remaining on their current deal, the less leverage his current team has in pursuing a possible deal. Which leads us to the final factor working in the Heat’s favor.

As can be seen as the season has developed, the Heat have a number of promising young players whom the Spurs would certainly have an interest in acquiring. In the same mould of the Heat, the Spurs have become a leader in the league in player development, with Leonard’s rise to superstardom testimony to their environment.

For the Spurs, this represents acquiring a genuine building block in Adebayo, and an improving two-way threat on the wing in Winslow. Furthermore, with the departure of Leonard and an aging roster, the acquisition of Waiters gives the Spurs a go-to scorer on the perimeter to play alongside Aldridge and the rest of their lineup.

For the Heat, this would provide the incredibly versatile starting lineup of:

• Goran Dragic – Josh Richardson – Leonard – James Johnson – Hassan Whiteside

While the loss in particular of Adebayo and Winslow and Adebayo would hurt, remember Riley dealt away young emerging stars in Caron Butler and Lamar Odom in their acquisition of Shaquille O’Neal. In other words, Riley is not afraid to trade, and certainly not afraid to fail.

Next: 2017-18 Week 21 NBA Power Rankings

In the meantime, all the Heat (and the rest of the league) can do is monitor how the remainder of the season transpires for Leonard, and then ascertain whether he is worth pursuing this coming summer.