As though the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes couldn’t get more contested, the Portland Trailblazers reached out to the Spurs and Leonard’s team to see if they could possibly work a package together. The official report came from Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, who stated “no Blazers package includes Damian Lillard or C.J. McCollum.”
If the Blazers manage to get Kawhi without having to break up their backcourt, they will finally be able to be contenders in the West. Lillard, despite rumors that he was fed up with the team’s inability to get to the Western Conference Finals and wanted out of Portland, said he plans to continue playing for his beloved Trail Blazers. A team with Lillard, McCollum, Kawhi, and big man Jusuf Nurkic is surely enough to rival the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
The problem with trading for Kawhi is he will likely be a one-year rental. His contract expires in 2019 and there are all too many reports that he plans on joining the Los Angeles Lakers. Because of this, most teams are apprehensive to trade away valuable assets for a player who may not even return the following season. According to ESPN, the Spurs are looking for “an All-Star-caliber player, high-potential young players, and draft assets” in exchange for Kawhi. They are basically asking teams to give up more assets than the team deems worthy for Kawhi. 2-time All-Star and Finals MVP is also injury prone, as he sat out most of last season with an injured right quad.
According to ESPN, the Sixers, who are also in contention for Kawhi, are keeping their young stars like Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons out of trade talk. Similarly, the Celtics are not letting Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Gordon Hayward, or Jaylen Brown get involved with a trade for Kawhi. So it seems that the teams most serious about Kawhi are keeping their most valuable assets off the table.
The Spurs have no problem with slow-playing trade talks with other ball clubs, but the fact of the matter is Kawhi’s value won’t get higher than it already is now. Teams are extending pick heavy offers, but the Spurs are determined to have the upper hand in all trades. However, offers won’t improve because the teams know Kawhi will most likely not exercise his player option for the 2019-2020 season and become a free agent. Kawhi’s value is higher in the summer than if the Spurs decide to trade him during the NBA season because at least if he’s dealt in the summer, the receiving team will have a year to try and convince Leonard to resign with them when he becomes a free agent. But the Spurs should act soon because offers will not improve, no matter what teams jump in trade talks.
Hopefully we’ll see deals being finalized in the near future for the NBA champ.
