Kawhi Leonard’s state of being and feelings about his future in San Antonio were anything but clear this past season. While he’s in Toronto for at least a year, one potential destination that keeps coming up is Los Angeles. But which team specifically?
Up until 2018, Kawhi Leonard was seen as the perfect franchise player. A quiet, level-headed, and hardworking player who also possesses superstar level talent is an amazing recipe for a long-term franchise player. Almost everyone thought Leonard would follow in the footsteps of his tenured San Antonio Spurs teammates, like Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili, and remain a Spur for the entirety of his career. While he’s still seen as a franchise player, many opinions have shifted.
This past season saw the 6’7″ forward play just nine games due to a combination of recovery time from injury and frustration with the team. Although medically cleared to play, Leonard never returned and his camp refuted the claims that there was a rift between him and the organization.
Over time, however, the disconnect between Leonard and Spurs became more and more obvious and he was eventually traded to Toronto along with Danny Green for All-Star guard DeMar DeRozan, a young Jakob Poeltl, and a protected 2019 first round pick.
While there have been some reports that Leonard could be warming up to the idea of staying a Raptor, he still retains a player option and could end up a free agent during 2019. L.A. has been referred to as a likely destination, as he’d be able to team up with LeBron James and the young Los Angeles Lakers. However it’s recently been reported that the Los Angeles Clippers could be the frontrunner for the superstar forward.
Insider reports
While nothing is official, Jalen Rose recently claimed on the Jalen and Jacoby Podcast that if Leonard decides to leave Toronto, it’ll be for the Clippers.
"“If Kawhi goes to L.A it’s going to be to the Clippers. You heard me, Marcellus. That’s one of the reasons why they kept Doc Rivers.”"
Obviously, the statement has a qualifier and suggests that this will probably be the case if he leaves Toronto, but the point still remains. Remember, Jalen Rose was the one who initially broke the news that Leonard wanted out of San Antonio in the first place.
Even excluding Rose’s potential prediction, Jerry West has made it clear that he’ll make the moves necessary to land Raptors forward and the team projects to be a great fit for him in the future.
Fit with the team
On the Lakers, Leonard would be playing with the best player in the world and some promising young wings like Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma. He’d obviously take priority over one of those guys or they’d move to a different position, but he’d never get the chance to be the first option with James on the team.
If he wants to win a ring, the Lakers are probably a good move, but don’t discount the Clippers’ future with the right moves and some time. Unlike the Lakers, Leonard would instantly become the first option for the Clips and would have a developing and highly skilled playmaker in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to make up for his inability to consistently distribute the basketball. Lou Williams may be 31 years old, but he’s still got some high-caliber play left in the tank and is on a three-year contract to remain in L.A. as a top 2-3 scoring option.
Jerome Robinson projects to be a solid scorer for the future and pieces like Danilo Gallinari and Montrezl Harrell would prove helpful off the bench with Williams. Unfortunately, it seems as though Tobias Harris will be looking to get a max contract after this season, which would force the Clippers to choose Leonard over him (an easy choice) unless he were willing to take a serious discount. After declining an $80 million extension, it’s unlikely he’ll do so.
Still, if the Clippers add more depth pieces or trade salary to make room for a respectable deal for Harris, Leonard would be signing on as the first option to a team with an extremely effective and near All-Star caliber Tobias Harris, an in-stride and productive Lou Williams, and two promising young guards with bright futures as well as a capable bench unit. Even if Harris signs elsewhere, if everything goes according to plan, the Clippers could alter the course of their fairly mediocre history.
It’s possible, but is it likely?
Over the past few seasons, the Toronto Raptors have become known for retaining a top-three seed in the Eastern Conference but struggling when it comes to the postseason. With Leonard now in the place of DeRozan, things could change, but the team is still very much the same.
They’ve got solid bench pieces and Kyle Lowry has been an All-Star for the past few seasons. The Raptors are almost guaranteed to be a top-three seed in the East once again, especially with LeBron out of the way, but that doesn’t necessarily guarantee Leonard will re-sign next summer.
He’s the main guy in Toronto and has pieces around him just like he would with the Clippers, but Lowry is the only other true All-Star on that team and he’ll be 33 this year. Short-term, the Raptors are a great fit. Although it’s easier to make the Finals in the East than the West, the Raptors don’t project to be an elite team for too much longer simply due to their only true star aging. Sure, they’ve got some solid talent, but not many All-Star caliber players.
Leonard already has a ring and has won Finals MVP, so he doesn’t have much left to prove. Whether he stays in Toronto or not, all reports seem to point to the fact that Kawhi wants to be the main guy somewhere and wants to be successful for a good while. He’ be able to achieve both of those things with the Los Angeles Clippers.