Each NBA team’s greatest free agent signing in franchise history

LA Clippers: Kawhi Leonard, Small Forward (2019-present)

By the time free agency rolled around in the summer of 2019, Kawhi Leonard was a reigning champion and Finals MVP. He was at the peak of his powers and proved it throughout an incredible postseason run with the Toronto Raptors.

As a free agent, Kawhi could’ve returned to the north to defend his title. He could’ve linked up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis to form one heck of a trio on the Lakers. Instead of either of those attractive options, Leonard went with the road less traveled by signing with the LA Clippers, signaling a new era for an organization that spent the last several years trying to build one.

For years, the Clippers had been the laughing stocks of the NBA. Even though the trio of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan brought newfound success to the franchise, Lob City was the product of draft picks and trades.

The other LA franchise had never previously been wanted, and yet no worse than the second-best free agent available chose to commit some of his prime years to them. It helped to reside in Kawhi’s hometown with the ability to land a legitimate co-star in Paul George. But the Clippers positioned themselves through a rebrand that began the day Steve Ballmer took over as owner.

Leonard’s first run with his new team was certainly a learning experience, one that didn’t go as anybody had planned. There’s a possibility that his second year in LA will be his last, but the Clippers knew that going in. It’s why they gave up years worth of draft picks to make the trade that ultimately got them Kawhi’s signature.

More than ever before, the Clippers’ championship dreams are legitimate with Leonard leading the way. For a franchise still looking for its first-ever spot in the Western Conference Finals, that fantasy doesn’t come around often, which is why even that’s good enough to earn Kawhi LA’s spot on this list.