Lakers insiders on their toes about the possibility of Leonard
Even like Kawhi Leonard continues to act for Los Angeles Clippers on the field, there is much speculation surrounding his long-term future. The Aspiration scandal may eventually attract some kind of punishment for the franchise/player, and many have argued that the Clippers might choose to trade him.
And as things stand, NBA insider Jovan Buha he claimed that there is no team with more cap space to take over a player of Kawhi’s stature than their closest rivals the Lakers.
“Either Kawhi’s script is forced to be traded or his contract is void and he’s a free agent, nobody has more cap space this summer than the Lakers. So the Lakers are in a great position. Living in LA for the past six years, I don’t know if he’d want to move.. That could put the Lakers in a position to acquire him or sign him.” he said per HoopsHipe , before claiming he wanted to tread lightly on the subject.
“Now, the Lakers can bid high. They have three picks and they have cap space. So maybe that’s enough to attract the Clippers, depending on what that potential trade package looks like. But for now, I think it’s just noise, and until we know what the potential penalty is going to be, I don’t think it’s anything more than that,” he said.
However, Buha still claimed that the Clippers may not be willing to trade him to their rivals, and the situation could eventually lead to a bidding war.
“I don’t think the Clippers would like to trade Kawhi to the Lakers. And at that point, if you’re forced to trade him, I don’t think the league is going to be like, ‘You’ve got to trade him to the Lakers, you’ve got to trade him to Team X.’ It’s going to be, ‘Okay, let’s get into a bidding war here,'” he said.
There is undeniable bad blood among the ownership groups, highlighted by Lakers owner Jeanie Buss calling Clippers owner Steve Ballmer “Ballz,” in addition to the Lakers’ lingering institutional embarrassment over the unjustified trade of Ivica Zubac. Therefore, while there may be a ‘geographical fit’ for a Kawhi-Lakers trade, right now it appears to be a figment of the imagination rather than anything real.
2026-02-25 15:37:00
