Getty Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green
The wild world of Kawhi Leonard’s NBA free agency appears set to roll into the weekend, meaning the Los Angeles Lakers and Toronto Raptors continue the waiting game. Beyond that, another free agent in Danny Green also appears to be waiting to make his own decision now, largely due to his former teammate.
Green is one of the top remaining free agents following Leonard, and he’s been linked to the Lakers quite often also. But as expected, Green’s chances of signing with the Lakers will come down to Leonard’s decision, and if he wants to head to Los Angeles, then he should be rooting strongly one way.
As ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski stated (via Pick Up Hoop), if Leonard goes anywhere other than the Lakers, Green will “probably” head to Southern California. But if the NBA Finals MVP chooses to join LeBron James and company, Green would then likely land with the Dallas Mavericks.
“Kawhi goes to the Lakers, he probably goes to the Mavericks. If Kawhi goes anywhere else, Danny Green probably goes right into that Lakers cap space.” Wojnarowski said, per Pick Up Hoop on Twitter.
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Danny Green’s Interest in Joining Lakers
It has been long believed that Green and the Lakers likely had a mutual interest in teaming up during free agency. The only problem is that if Rob Pelinka and company sign Leonard to a max contract, they’ll be left to fill out their roster with minimum-level deals for the most part.
That hasn’t stopped Green from talking about the idea of teaming up with LeBron James and Anthony Davis in Los Angeles, and he cited the duo as a huge selling point on Inside the Green Room (via SportsCenter).
“They have two f***in’ superstars there. It speaks for itself.” Green stated, per SportsCenter on Twitter.
While Green would be a nice addition to the Lakers, the aforementioned Mavericks appear to be putting on the full-court press to sign him.
Danny Green Says Mavericks ‘Coming on Strong’ in Free Agency
If the Lakers do sign Leonard and Green goes elsewhere, it does appear that the Mavericks are very high on his list. During the episode of Inside the Green Room, the guard spoke about the Los Angeles teams along with Dallas while praising Mark Cuban for being a “strong bidder,” via the Dallas Morning News.
“The LA teams are in contention,” Green said. “They’ve reached out and shown the most interest. And Dallas — I’ve known Mark Cuban and Rick Carlisle for a long time. They have a really good interest in me. …
“I like what they have to offer. They’re coming on strong. Mark Cuban is a strong bidder. He’s putting the pressure on me to make a decision soon.”
Hopefully Leonard and Green will both be able to provide answers on their free agency destinations soon enough. But for now, fans of the Lakers, Raptors, Mavericks and Clippers are all anxiously awaiting the final word.
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