According to a report from ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski, the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs have re-engaged in trade talks for Kawhi Leonard.
It seems like the Spurs have all the leverage in getting the best offer for Kawhi because several other major free agents like LeBron James and Paul George are waiting to see if they want to opt in to the final year of their contracts with their respective teams or opt out, a decision that has to be made by Friday.
LeBron has come out and said that he’s not interested in prolonging the process of making his decision on where he wants to go next. And because Friday is the last day for him to opt-in and he has deep ties to Cleveland as well as lots of sway in the Cavaliers front-office, the Cavs are among the favorites to keep him.
The only previous talks reported between the Spurs and Lakers were short and unproductive, as it was described that the Spurs “slammed the door” on the Lakers when they came knocking, asking about Kawhi deals.
As much as it’s been reported that Kawhi wants to play for the Lakers, he’s still under contract with the Spurs, and they can send him to whomever provides the best offer in terms of players and picks. It may hinder the offers they receive since most teams think that if Leonard is sent anywhere but LA, they don’t have a chance to sign him long-term, but that still means that the Spurs can wait out the Lakers and let other teams get in on the action.
The Lakers don’t have time, because if they can’t sign Kawhi, then they probably won’t get LeBron. And because the Spurs know that sending Kawhi to the Lakers also ensure that LeBron goes to LA and will play in the same conference as them, they can hold out for a Godfather offer of picks and players without taking on too much salary, possibly getting a third team involved.
Or the Spurs, themselves, could try to create cap space at the start of free agency to convince LeBron that he doesn’t have to go to LA to play with Kawhi. He can come to San Antonio to do that and play for Gregg Popovich.
There’s a lot up in the air right now. And as much as reports could convince people that Kawhi has the leverage over the Spurs, that’s just not true. The Lakers have far more on the line than the Spurs do this offseason.
Now, will they make an offer reflective of their desperation? We’ll have to wait to find out.