LA Clippers: 3 teams competing with the Clips for Kawhi Leonard next year
By Evan Desai
No. 1 team competing for Kawhi Leonard: Miami Heat
The Miami Heat have been pegged as a candidate for Kawhi Leonard since trade deadline day. They traded for three players (Victor Oladipo, Trevor Ariza, and Nemanja Bjelica) who are not signed for next season.
That leaves them with the resources to go out and sign Kawhi. The Heat are in a similar situation as the Knicks in a way.
They had some good moments during the regular season, but couldn’t get it done in the playoffs. The Heat may even need Leonard more than the Knicks. They were certainly a lesser team than the Knicks this year, finishing as the sixth seed in the East.
When the Heat were swept by the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs this year, it was clear that they made a mistake by not trading for superstar James Harden when they were in the running.
They didn’t have a lot of draft assets, so the negotiations had to stop. This time around, they’ll have a chance to get a superstar in Kawhi without trading anybody in return.
Their reported issue that stopped them from pursuing Harden won’t be in play while looking to bring in Leonard. This could be an opportunity that the Heat may not be willing to pass up, especially after taking a major step back in 2021.
Next. 1 reason Boogie should play in this series. dark
It’s been reported that Kawhi might really like Ty Lue, and he might be really content with playing in this location. There’s no reason to panic just yet, but if Kawhi tests the market, he may head to one of these three teams.