Kawhi Leonard is arguably the biggest prize on the NBA trade market as the free agency period opens on June 30 and deals can officially go through after the league’s moratorium on activity ends on July 6.
Leonard, 35, is going into the final year of the three-year extension he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers in January 2024, set to be paid $50.3 million for the upcoming season. But with the Clippers over the salary cap, moving Leonard’s salary could be crucial.
Coming off a season during which he averaged a career-high 27.9 points, Leonard is drawing interest from several teams who either see him as making them a playoff contender or lifting them into championship contention. However, any potential deal would likely be contingent on Leonard agreeing to a new contract extension.
The Dallas Mavericks are among the teams showing interest in trading for Leonard, according to The Athletic. Dallas’ trade package would reportedly be built around Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington and draft picks.
Such a deal would reunite the 14-year veteran with Masai Ujiri, the Mavericks’ president of basketball operations who traded for Leonard in 2018 when he was executive VP for the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors went on to win the NBA championship with Leonard earning NBA Finals MVP honors in his lone season with the team.
Another possible reunion would see Leonard returning to Toronto. He is willing to sign an extension with the Raptors, according to reporter Jake Fischer. However, discussions between the two teams might hinge on whether or not the Clippers accept the players that Toronto wants to trade.
The Raptors would prefer to include Brandon Ingram rather than RJ Barrett in any Leonard deal, according to reporter Jake Fischer. Ingram, 28, was Toronto’s leading scorer last season with 21.2 points per game compared to Barrett’s 19.3 per game average.
Ingram is set to make $40 million next season and has a $42 million player option for 2027-28. Barrett’s salary is $29.6 million for 2026-27 and he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. He is also two years younger.
One contender that Leonard is reportedly not interested in joining is the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons finished as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference last season with a 60-22 record, yet they lost in the second round of the playoffs to the Cleveland Cavaliers in large part because the roster has no viable second scoring threat alongside Cade Cunningham.
Leonard would fill that role ideally as someone who can finish at the basket and shoot well from the outside (57% from the floor, 39% on 3-pointers). However, he would not sign a contract extension with the Pistons, Marc Stein reports. Because of that, Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has moved onto other offseason targets.
Two other teams that have been attached to Leonard in trade rumors, albeit with less reporting, are the San Antonio Spurs (with whom Leonard played for seven seasons before an acrimonious parting) and the Houston Rockets.
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