Plenty of the league’s top stars made their free agency decisions today, but Kawhi Leonard wasn’t one of them. Does his waiting benefit the LA Clippers?
It’s been a long day for LA Clippers fans waiting to see their favorite team’s name pop up in rumors. Next-to-nothing of substance came from their side on Sunday, and while the day isn’t over just yet, it’s already been reported that Kawhi Leonard will take at least a few more days to make his decision.
Leonard presumably has three teams waiting on his decision. In addition to the Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors are considered equal threats to sign the two-way star, with neither side being clearly favored over the other.
Today has also been difficult for fans to take in, as several quality role players and stars have come off the board one after the other. It started with Kevin Durant announcing his decision to sign with the Brooklyn Nets, while guys like Al Horford and Jimmy Butler have been some of the latest to agree to new deals elsewhere.
However, one could argue that all those players coming off harms the Lakers more than it does the Clippers or Raptors, as depth is currently the biggest strength of the latter two teams.
The Lakers obviously have the two best players in the race in LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but without much else of a roster, it has to hurt to see players like Terrence Ross, Bojan Bogdanovic and Kemba Walker agree to deals elsewhere. There are still plenty of players still available, yes, but a lot of the rumored targets have already come off the board.
Meanwhile, some of the Clippers expected key departures — including Patrick Beverley and JaMychal Green — are yet to agree to deals, despite gaining plenty of interest around the league. A return to the Clippers certainly seems possible, especially if LA can find a way to move Danilo Gallinari‘s contract. There are also the rumblings in regards to Danny Green, which could potentially tie into LA’s pitch.
Leonard has also yet to meet with the Clippers, which is something that could still sway the forward their way. Jerry West, Lawrence Frank and the rest of LA’s front office have been preparing a pitch for Leonard practically all season long, so I wouldn’t expect them to give up simply because other stars didn’t come. The plan has been to get him all along, and until the Clippers are crossed off his list, there’s plenty of reason to believe this is still a three-team race.
Leonard could, of course, choose to sign with the Lakers after a few days of mulling his decision, and that seems very possible at this point in time. But if he knows that they’re his next destination, it would make sense to announce the deal sooner rather than later so that the Lakers can move forward in their pursuit of a supporting cast.
Surely the LA Clippers didn’t plan for the opening day of free agency to go the way it did, but now isn’t the time to abandon hope. Their top target is still on the board, and as long as that remains true, they should be considered a legitimate landing spot for the two-way star, regardless of who joins him.