The Los Angeles Clippers are still dealing with the fallout of the Kawhi Leonard drama and will have this following them for the next decade. Leonard allegedly getting money under the table with fraudulent sponsorships to circumvent the NBA salary cap led to the Clippers losing many picks. A new report confirms that Leonard lost all loyalty for the Clippers and didn’t care about their future once they refused to extend his contract.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported when and what made Kawhi request a trade to leave the Clippers:
“The Clippers, sources say, were not willing to offer an extension to Leonard beyond his $50.3 million contract for the 2026-27 season, which was the initial spark that led to trade talks with the Toronto Raptors before the summer-long wait for a resolution to the NBA’s yearlong external investigation commissioned to address allegations of salary cap circumvention by the Clippers.”
Rumors instantly started leaking about Leonard wanting to return to the Raptors or the San Antonio Spurs in a trade once he realized he wasn’t getting extended. Other aspects of the story involving the punishment showed Kawhi distancing himself from the Clippers before the trade was finalized. Logic would dictate that the two sides started to sour putting together elements of story.
Kawhi Leonard Could Have Helped Clippers Fight NBA
One interesting element of the punishment is that the Clippers have no grounds to fight the punishment due to Leonard’s involvement. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver seemingly gave Kawhi a slap on the wrist and harshly punished the Clippers to appease the players’ union.
Leonard being content with his light punishment of a fine and no games suspended erased any chances of him standing strong with the Clippers. Owner Steve Ballmer and the rest of the Clippers had no chance of fighting this without Kawhi agreeing with their stance in court.
This ultimately caused the Clippers to accept the punishment with hopes of Keaton Wagler being good enough to lead the franchise. Leonard instantly wanted out and felt distance from the franchise solely due to not getting a huge contract extension before the investigation ended.
Clippers Fans Will Likely Boo Kawhi Leonard
Another noteworthy topic about this subject involves how Leonard will be treated by the Clipper fan base. The timing of Kawhi leaving to team up with Scottie Barnes in Toronto makes this story even worse since the two parties are leaving on a bitter ending.
Leonard’s chances of getting his jersey retired likely ended when the franchise got punished via five more draft picks. Kawhi also inspired the trade that lost future MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a boatload of other draft picks for Paul George.
The Clippers having nothing to show for the Leonard beyond a decisive Western Conference Finals elimination makes it a failure. Punishments turn it from a failure to an all-time terrible NBA disaster. The franchise relying on Brandon Ingram, Darius Garland and Wagler to hold any relevance is a dark place. Kawhi will likely get booed and hated by Clippers fans when he returns as a visitor.
Kawhi Leonard Backstabbed Clippers For Not Extending Contract