Kawhi Leonard

Latest On Kawhi Leonard

July 25th, 2018 at 8:47am CST by Luke Adams

While the blockbuster trade between the Spurs and Raptors was formally announced nearly a week ago, the move is now officially official, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, who reports that Kawhi Leonard has passed his physical with Toronto. Danny Green and DeMar DeRozan also passed their respective physicals, Windhorst adds.

As we saw last summer when the Celtics and Cavaliers made their Kyrie Irving/Isaiah Thomas mega-deal, a problem with a player’s physical can prevent a trade from becoming official even after the teams have sent out press releases announcing the move.

In the case of the C’s and Cavs, Cleveland’s concern about Thomas’ health dragged out the process for another week and resulted in the Cavs receiving an extra draft pick in the swap. There will be no such adjustments to this year’s trade between the Raptors and Spurs.

Meanwhile, Leonard won’t attend Team USA’s non-mandatory mini-camp in Las Vegas this week, according to ESPN’s Chris Haynes, who tweets that the star forward will instead use the time to prepare for the transition to his new NBA team.

Leonard’s decision doesn’t come as a surprise. Prior to last week’s trade, reports indicated that he was considering attending the mini-camp to show prospective suitors that he was healthy, but now that he has been traded, that incentive to show up has faded. Considering Leonard missed all but nine games with an injury last season, it makes sense for him to sit out the session.

Stars like LeBron James and Stephen Curry also don’t plan on attending this week’s mini-camp, though DeRozan is expected to be present, per Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link). Of course, Team USA and Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich will also be there and will get a first-hand look at his newly-acquired All-Star.

Kawhi Notes: Long-Term Future, Best Case Scenario, Performance

July 22nd, 2018 at 6:23pm CST by marksuleymanov

Ever since the Raptors swung a blockbuster deal with the Spurs to acquire two-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard, speculation about his interest — or lack thereof — in playing in Canada has been rampant. There have been reports ranging from Leonard having no desire to suit up for Toronto to team president Masai Ujiri saying that the 2014 NBA champion is prepared for next season.

Leonard will hit free agency next summer when his current contract expires. The Lakers have been frequently connected to Leonard as a possible — if not likely — destination for him. However, at least one person believes that Leonard’s tenure with the Raptors will last more than one season. Mark Zeigler of The San Diego Union-Tribune spoke to a close Leonard confidant who believes the superstar will re-sign with Toronto.

“He’s going to fall in love with Toronto – it’s going to happen. He’s not going to leave, I’m telling you,” the source said.

There have been many reports on Kawhi’s alleged frame of mind regarding his new team, but it’s unlikely we’ll get a clear indication on his future unless it comes directly from Leonard. In any case, adding Leonard to a 59-win team that claimed the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference a year ago bodes well for Toronto, assuming the star forward is healthy.

Check out more Leonard notes below:

ESPN’s Andre Snellings examines the best-case scenario for the both the Raptors and Leonard. While DeMar DeRozan was recognized as a franchise star who improved each season, statistics show that the Raptors outscored opponents by a wider margin when he was on the bench. If Leonard is healthy, his potent combination of elite scoring and defense improves Toronto on both sides of the court, Snellings writes.
With Leonard joining the Raptors, a lot of unknowns remain, says Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. While the two-time Defensive Player of the Year is viewed around the league as a quiet person who prefers to keep himself out of the spotlight, his enigmatic personality won’t matter as much as his ability to regain his All-NBA form in Toronto.
If you missed it, here is a rundown of Ujiri’s press conference from Friday, where he addressed Leonard’s arrival and miscommunication with DeRozan.

Ujiri: There Was No Trade Talk With DeRozan

July 20th, 2018 at 8:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Raptors president Masai Ujiri claims he never told DeMar DeRozan he would not be traded, though Ujiri admits making a mistake talking at length with the All-Star shooting guard about his future with the franchise, according to an ESPN report. DeRozan fumed publicly over being traded to the Spurs as their centerpiece of the deal that landed Kawhi Leonard in Toronto.

“I had a conversation with DeMar at summer league, and I really want to leave it at that,” Ujiri said during a news conference Friday. “We spoke … I think maybe my mistake was talking about what we expected going forward from him. So, not necessarily talking about a trade but what I expect from him going forward, and I think that’s where the gap was.”

We have more regarding the blockbuster trade:

Ujiri simply couldn’t pass up the chance of acquiring Leonard, even though Leonard wants to play in Los Angeles when he can exercise his early termination contract option next summer. Ujiri feels it was worth the risk. “We’ve been doing this for how many years?,” Ujiri said, according to a transcript of his press conference posted by RaptorsRepublic.com. “You can’t keep doing the same thing over and over again and when you get a chance to get a top 5 player – which isn’t very often – I think you have to jump on it.”
Leonard has not expressed any reservations about playing in Toronto, according to Ujiri, who will push hard to convince Leonard to re-sign with the Raptors. “I think there’s a lot to sell here,” Ujiri said. “Our team, our culture, our city, our ownership, we have everything here except a championship, in my humble opinion. I don’t think we lack anything in this city.’
DeRozan apparently wasn’t impressed by Ujiri’s apology, according to an Instagram post that was relayed by The Score (Twitter link).
Leonard has officially arrived in Toronto to take his physical. The team tweeted out a photo of him at their practice facility.

Spurs Notes: Leonard, Trade Details, Green

July 19th, 2018 at 5:23pm CST by Luke Adams

In his breakdown of this week’s mega-deal that sent Kawhi Leonard to Toronto and DeMar DeRozan to San Antonio, ESPN’s Zach Lowe relays several intriguing Spurs-related tidbits on the situation. According to Lowe, San Antonio “never showed interest” in Leonard offers that were heavy on draft picks and unproven young players. Even in talks with the Sixers, it’s not clear if Markelle Fultz would have piqued the Spurs’ interest — San Antonio wanted one of Ben Simmons or Joel Embiid in any deal with Philadelphia, says Lowe.

Lowe also notes (via Twitter) that the league memo announcing the Leonard trade between the Raptors and Spurs includes one more interesting item: San Antonio is sending $5MM in cash to Toronto as part of the swap. As Lowe observes, that money is likely meant to help make up for the fact that Leonard’s trade kicker will increase the Raps’ projected tax bill for 2018/19, as we detailed on Wednesday.

Here’s more from Lowe, along with a few more Spurs notes:

The Spurs had dangled Danny Green in previous trade discussions over the past year, and weren’t seeking a big return for him, sources tell Lowe.
According to Lowe, San Antonio lowered its asking price for Leonard in the days leading up to the club’s agreement with Toronto. However, it was still difficult for other teams to put together an appealing package, since the Spurs’ top priority was acquiring an established veteran scorer who was under contract for multiple seasons.
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich spoke to reporters on Wednesday about the Leonard trade, explaining the team’s thinking and making an effort to turn the page on the Kawhi drama. Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com has the story, along with the quotes from Popovich, who had nothing but good things to say about Leonard. “Kawhi was a great teammate the whole way through,” Popovich said. “He did his work, and he was no problem for anybody. Talking heads out there have to have a story. If I was a talking head, maybe I am, I would have stories, too. All the stories that denigrated him in that regard, that was unfortunate and inaccurate.”
In an interesting piece for ESPN.com, Bobby Marks takes an in-depth look at why the Raptors matched up best with what the Spurs were looking for and won the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes over teams like the Celtics, Sixers, and Lakers, who approached Leonard trade talks more conservatively.

Latest On The Kawhi Leonard-DeMar DeRozan Trade

July 19th, 2018 at 11:44am CST by Arthur Hill

The Raptors had several conversations with Kawhi Leonard and his agent after Wednesday’s blockbuster trade, tweets Michael Grange of Sportsnet, who adds that the talks were “positive” and “forward-looking.” Leonard hasn’t taken his physical yet, reports Josh Lewenberg of TSN (Twitter link), but the team isn’t concerned and remains confident that he will pass it (Twitter link).

Toronto could opt to waive the physical, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said yesterday in an appearance on “Outside The Lines,” although that would obviously be a risky move. Leonard has 48 hours to report to the Raptors, but Windhorst notes the team could opt to extend that deadline. Team president Masai Ujiri is expected to address the media on the deal by the end of the week.

There’s more news to pass along on the biggest trade of the summer:

The Spurs were determined to get a scorer in exchange for Leonard, which is why the Raptors were able to get their attention with DeMar DeRozan, according to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. San Antonio wasn’t looking to begin the rebuilding process with a package of draft picks and unproven players. In addition, Jakob Poeltl provides a young interior presence for a team that starts 38-year-old Pau Gasol and 33-year-old LaMarcus Aldridge.
The Spurs lost leverage when LeBron James joined the Lakers without demanding another star accompany him, writes Zach Lowe of ESPN. Lingering injury concerns and Leonard’s open desire to play in his hometown of Los Angeles prevented the Spurs from getting a return more in line with his value. The Raptors now have several months to sell Leonard on the benefits of playing in Toronto, adds Lowe, who says if they get the feeling by Thanksgiving that he still plans to leave next summer, they can move him to the Lakers or Clippers for about what they paid for him.
Even though Leonard has made it clear he doesn’t want to play in Toronto, he represented the team’s best chance to acquire an elite talent, Lewenberg writes in a full story. Leonard also came at a reasonable price, as Ujiri didn’t have to part with his three best young prospects in OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam and Delon Wright and held onto all his draft picks after 2019.
The Spurs traded one unhappy player for another and will have to work to develop a positive relationship with DeRozan, observes Sam Amick of USA Today. DeRozan felt betrayed by the Raptors, posting “Be told one thing & the outcome another. Can’t trust em. Ain’t no loyalty in this game” as part of an Instagram message. San Antonio may rely on assistant coach Ime Udoka, a former workout partner of DeRozan, to help smooth things over.
With Leonard and Tony Parker both gone and Manu Ginobili contemplating retirement, the Spurs are moving into a new era, notes Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated. The changes make a 22nd consecutive trip to the playoffs look like an uncertain prospect, he adds.

Raptors Notes: Ujiri, Leonard, DeRozan, VanVleet

July 18th, 2018 at 4:55pm CST by clarkcrum

By trading away franchise cornerstone DeMar DeRozan, Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri demonstrated his belief that Toronto’s roster, as constructed pre-Kawhi Leonard, wasn’t going to get the job done against the Celtics or the rest of the Eastern Conference, reports Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports.

But now that Leonard is a Raptor, the obvious question becomes, for how long? The Lakers, like most everyone else who follows or reports on the NBA, believe they will land Leonard next summer. Yet, the brass in L.A. felt the same way last summer when they saw Paul George, who publicly voiced his desire to play in Hollywood, be traded to the Thunder only to re-sign with Oklahoma City earlier this month without so much as a second look at the Lakers.

Per Mannix, however, this feels different. The Raptors don’t have an MVP sidekick to pair with Leonard like the Thunder have in Russell Westbrook, and as Chris Haynes of ESPN blunty tweeted earlier today, Leonard has “no desire” to play in Toronto. But then again, Toronto is not an undesirable city, it plays host to one of the most rabid fan bases in all of professional sports, and Ujiri will have an entire year to sell Leonard on a future in Canada.

Ultimately Ujiri, who another front office executive tagged as “really impressive” and a “tremendous asset,” chose to roll the dice on an MVP-caliber player knowing that there were risks attached. It remains to be seen, at least until next summer, whether Ujiri’s gamble will payoff.

There’s more from The North:

In a subsequent tweet from Haynes, the ESPN scribe mentions how players around the NBA have not failed to notice that the Raptors have yet to make a statement thanking DeRozan for his contributions over a nine-year period with the franchise.
In another article for Yahoo Sports, Michael Lee opines that the DeRozan/Leonard trade is unique because both of the marquee players involved are furious with the deal. For his part, DeRozan is particularly hurt because he claims to have been told by the Raptors just recently that he wouldn’t be traded out of Toronto. And after former franchise stars like Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter, and Chris Bosh bolted, it seems cruel for a player like DeRozan, who actually wanted to stay in Toronto, to be sent packing without his approval.
In other Raptors‘ news, re-signed guard Fred VanVleet sat down with Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype for a wide-ranging interview detailing everything from his free agency experience this summer and last season’s breakout performance to his thoughts on former coach Dwane Casey and new head coach Nick Nurse.

More Notes, Updates On Kawhi Leonard Blockbuster

July 18th, 2018 at 12:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors and Spurs officially announced their blockbuster trade involving Kawhi Leonard and DeMar DeRozan today, issuing a pair of press releases to confirm the deal. However, the Raptors have yet to conduct a physical on Leonard, as ESPN’s Brian Windhorst noted during an appearance on Outside the Lines.

Windhorst suggests there’s a chance that the Raptors could waive Leonard’s physical, since they just want the two-time Defensive Player of the Year on their roster and may be willing to take a gamble on his health. Still, it’s a situation worth keeping an eye on. Last year, the Cavaliers and Celtics seemingly finalized their Kyrie Irving blockbuster before Isaiah Thomas‘ physical held up the deal for an extra week. I don’t expect that to happen here, and it’s even less likely that this trade falls through, but it’s not necessarily officially official until the Raptors make a call on that physical.

Here are many more reactions, notes, and updates on today’s mega-deal:

Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri has a reputation for making bold decisions, but the team’s acquisition of Leonard is his boldest move to date, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. As Lewenberg observes, Ujiri has long wanted to land a bona-fide superstar, and finally gets a chance to do so with his deal for Leonard.
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich informed Leonard’s camp of today’s trade early on Wednesday in what was called a “cordial” conversation, a source tells David Aldridge of TNT. According to Aldridge, Leonard isn’t thrilled about being sent to the Raptors for a few reasons, including the higher taxation rate in Canada — Texas, of course, has no state income tax.
The Spurs‘ top priority in Leonard trade talks was landing an established scorer capable of averaging 20+ PPG, per NBA columnist Mitch Lawrence (Twitter link). The club achieved that goal by landing DeRozan.
According to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News, there’s a “fine line between hope and desperation,” and Deveney believes the Raptors land on the wrong side of that line with this trade.
The trade is “tantalizing on paper” for the Raptors, but includes plenty of red flags and comes at a cost, given DeRozan’s loyalty to the franchise, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.
The Raptors are sending a loud message that they’re not happy with merely being good and want to be great, says Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.
Longtime Spurs swingman Danny Green posted a goodbye message to the club and its fans today on Instagram, adding that he’s looking forward to his “next chapter” in Toronto.
We passed along more notes on the Spurs/Raptors trade earlier today.

Raptors, Spurs Finalize Leonard, DeRozan Trade

July 18th, 2018 at 11:06am CST by Austin Kent

11:06am: The trade is now official, according to a press release issued by the Spurs.

8:07am: The deal will send Leonard and Green to Toronto in exchange for DeRozan, Poeltl, and a protected 2019 first-round pick, league sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Jabari Young of The San Antonio Express-News first reported Green’s inclusion in the trade (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter) that the 2019 first-round pick is protected from 1-20. If it doesn’t change hands after one year, it would turn into a pair of second-round picks instead.

The extra assets beyond Leonard and DeRozan look good for the Raptors, who will get to hang on their top two prospects in Anunoby and Siakam, and will only surrender a late first-rounder, at worst. Toronto will also add Green, a three-and-D wing who is a career 39.5% three-point shooter and is on a $10MM expiring contract.

Toronto will also create a modest trade exception equivalent to Poeltl’s $2.95MM salary in the deal.

7:15am: The Raptors and Spurs have reached an agreement in principle on a deal that will send Leonard to Toronto and DeRozan to San Antonio, reports Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Woj, there are more pieces involved on both sides, and players are still being informed about the deal. A trade call with the NBA is expected to happen later today.

4:53am: The Raptors are finalizing a trade to acquire Kawhi Leonard from the Spurs, Chris Haynes and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN report. San Antonio would receive a package headlined by DeMar DeRozan in the swap.

The Raptors and Spurs have been exploring such a trade for at least two weeks now, though Haynes adds that DeRozan was allegedly told during the Las Vegas summer league that he wouldn’t be dealt.

“Be told one thing & the outcome another,” DeRozan wrote in a story on his Instagram account early Wednesday morning. “Can’t trust em. Ain’t no loyalty in this game. Sell you out quick for a little bit of nothing.”

Neither Leonard nor DeRozan appears to be particularly pleased with the potential deal, with Haynes noting in a subsequent tweet that sources have told him that Leonard has no desire to play in Toronto. As ESPN’s Zach Lowe tweets, Leonard would risk fines and possible forfeiture of his 2018/19 salary if he’s traded to the Raptors and doesn’t report to the team, unless he can provide a legitimate medical reason.

The two clubs are said to have discussed several packages and a deal could be agreed to in principle as early as today.

With Leonard eligible to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, Raptors president Masai Ujiri is taking a substantial risk trading a committed All-Star for an outside player with eyes for Los Angeles. That said, the Thunder took a similar chance trading for Paul George last summer and it paid off when he re-signed long-term earlier this month.

Leonard, who has a 15% trade kicker, is set to earn approximately $23.1MM in 2018/19 (counting that trade bonus) before becoming eligible for free agency a year from now, so even if the Kawhi experiment doesn’t work, the Raptors could clear some long-term salary from their books in a deal. DeRozan will make $27.74MM annually for the next two years, with a player option worth the same amount in 2020/21.

Given the difference in salaries between the two stars, and the fact that the Spurs will likely receive another player or two in any deal, the Raptors may also take on another veteran to even out the ’18/19 money involved. Patty Mills ($11.57MM), Danny Green ($10MM), and perhaps even Pau Gasol ($16.8MM) would be candidates.

As we wrote yesterday, the supposed asking price for Leonard could be as high as an All-Star caliber player, high-potential young players, and draft picks. If DeRozan represents the first item on that list, it will be interesting to see what other pieces round out the offer. Toronto’s roster features a handful of intriguing young players, including OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, and Jakob Poeltl. The Raptors also control all their future draft picks.

At full health, a content, committed Leonard could easily justify such a substantial haul, but concerns about his quadriceps injury and his willingness to re-sign with a non-L.A. team trading for him may have diminished his value.

Although the Raptors have been prominently linked to Leonard of late, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports notes in his own story on the potential deal that the Lakers, Clippers, Sixers and Celtics were said to be suitors as well. On Tuesday, we learned that the Nuggets, Suns, Trail Blazers, and Wizards also talked to San Antonio about a possible trade.

Given that he was limited to just nine games last season, and didn’t look like his All-NBA self, it’s hard to gauge exactly what the Raptors might expect to see from Leonard on the court. Still, he’s just one year removed from back-to-back finishes as a top-three MVP candidate and a member of the All-NBA First Team.

Those All-NBA nods allowed Leonard to qualify for a Designated Veteran Extension worth 35% of the cap with the Spurs. By the time he officially became eligible to sign such an extension this week though, the star forward’s desire to leave San Antonio was well known, making a new deal with the Spurs an extreme long shot — even if the club was willing to offer it.

Leonard will lose his eligibility for that five-year super-max deal – worth an estimated $221MM – if he’s traded. If he’s sent to Toronto and becomes a free agent next summer, Kawhi would be eligible for up to five years and nearly $190MM with the Raptors or four years and $140.6MM with another team, based on current cap projections for 2019/20.

In nine seasons with the Raptors, DeRozan has averaged 19.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. The 28-year-old has been named an All-Star in four of the past five seasons and played an instrumental role in Toronto’s rise up the Eastern Conference ranks the past half decade.

Per Wojnarowski (via Twitter), a Spurs/Raptors swap has been close for a few days, but has nearly fallen apart multiple times. Ujiri wanted to let DeRozan know about the impending deal himself late last night, according to Woj, who adds that DeRozan and good friend Kyle Lowry talked a few hours ago.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Early Reactions, Notes On Leonard/DeRozan Trade

July 18th, 2018 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

The highest-profile trade candidate of the 2018 NBA offseason finally appears to be on the move, as the Raptors and Spurs have reached an agreement in principle to swap Kawhi Leonard and DeMar DeRozan. The Spurs will also acquire Jakob Poeltl and a protected 2019 first-round pick, sending out Danny Green in the deal.

It’s a fascinating trade for a number of reasons, not least of which is the apparent distaste that each star has for it. DeRozan, who was reportedly recently informed by the Raptors that he wouldn’t be traded, published an early-morning Instagram story saying that there “ain’t no loyalty in this game,” and TNT’s David Aldridge (Twitter link) hears from a source that the longtime Raptor remains “extremely upset.” DeRozan isn’t backing off the claim that the team lied to him about a potential trade, Aldridge adds.

As for Leonard, his long-reported desire has been to return home to Los Angeles, so a move to Toronto represents just about the furthest thing possible from what he wanted. While it would be a surprise if he refuses to report to his new team, a long-term stay with the Raptors beyond the 2018/19 season will be a “very tough sell,” a source tells Aldridge (Twitter link),

Here’s more on the NBA’s latest blockbuster trade:

The Spurs are entering uncharted territory and facing an uncertain future, according to Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com, who relays a few interesting tidbits on the franchise and Leonard in his latest article.
Sources tell Wright that Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich “begged’ Leonard to let him announce to the media last season that the star forward wouldn’t be returning from his quadriceps injury, but Kawhi declined each time, believing he could still return. Leonard already “felt betrayed” by the club’s handling of his quad issue, and the uncertainty surrounding his absence and possible return didn’t help either side.
In a separate piece for ESPN.com, Wright breaks down the timeline of the Leonard saga, which started during the forward’s rehab process in the summer of 2017.
Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe passes along several initial thoughts on the deal, including the ripple effect the Raptors‘ acquisition of Leonard will have on other Eastern Conference contenders like the Celtics.
This isn’t the first time that the Raptors have looked into the possibility of moving DeRozan. According to Marc Stein of The New York Times, Toronto held exploratory discussions with the Timberwolves during the 2017 offseason about a deal that would have sent DeRozan to Minnesota and Andrew Wiggins to the Raptors. Those talks likely took place before Wiggins signed his five-year, maximum-salary extension.

Latest On Kawhi Leonard

July 17th, 2018 at 12:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs‘ asking price for Kawhi Leonard remains high, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne. In an article packed with Leonard-related tidbits, the ESPN duo suggests that – based on conversations with opposing teams – San Antonio appears to be seeking an All-Star caliber player, high-potential young players, and draft picks in exchange for Kawhi.

It’s not clear if the Spurs will be able to land that sort of return, according to Wojnarowski and Shelburne, who note that a three-way bidding war involving the Lakers, Celtics, and Sixers never really materialized. The Lakers are being patience and conveying confidence that Leonard will sign with them in 2019. As for the Celtics and Sixers, they’ve held their top players out of trade discussions and have offered pick-heavy packages, which haven’t enticed the Spurs.

Given the Spurs’ reported demands, a Raptors offer built around one of their All-Star guards (likely DeMar DeRozan), one or two of their young players, and draft picks could be the most logical package for San Antonio.

In an appearance on Zach Lowe’s ESPN podcast, Brian Windhorst said he thinks the Raptors are in the “driver’s seat” in the Leonard sweepstakes, since the Lakers and Sixers haven’t been aggressive in their pursuit of the star forward. Lowe didn’t go so far as to call the Raptors the favorites, but he cautioned not to underestimate the club or to view the rumors linking Leonard to Toronto as mere speculation.

Here are a few more notes and rumors on the NBA’s most noteworthy trade candidate:

In addition to the four teams noted above, the Clippers, Nuggets, Suns, Trail Blazers, and Wizards have talked to the Spurs about Leonard, league sources tell Wojnarowski and Shelburne. However, it’s unlikely that any of those teams has made a monster offer, given concerns that Kawhi would be a one-year rental. Portland hasn’t discussed Damian Lillard or C.J. McCollum, for instance, per ESPN.
Leonard is “seriously considering” participating in Team USA’s mini-camp next week, league sources tell Wojnarowski and Shelburne. There’s a sense that the All-Star wants to show the Spurs‘ prospective trade partners that he’s healthy, but there may be a concern within Leonard’s camp that participating in the mini-camp would give San Antonio more leverage to push him to report to camp in the fall.
While there have been whispers that Leonard has no intention of showing up at the Spurs‘ facility if he’s not traded, rival teams generally view that as an “empty threat,” since they’re skeptical he’s willing to risk forfeiting his $20MM salary for 2018/19, according to Wojnarowski and Shelburne,
The Spurs haven’t allowed potential trade partners to talk directly with Leonard or his camp, or to see his medical information, per ESPN’s report. It’s unlikely that stance would change unless the Spurs agree to a trade in principle with a team, Woj and Shelburne add.
Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders addressed the Leonard situation in his latest article, suggesting that the start of training camp could be a key deadline to keep an eye on. One source close to Leonard also tells Kyler that the forward would ideally like to be the “focal point” of a team going forward. It’s not clear how that alleged desire to be a team’s focal point will impact Leonard’s preference to join the Lakers now that LeBron James is in L.A., Kyler writes.