Earlier today it was reported that the San Antonio Spurs traded Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors. How does this impact the Los Angeles Lakers?
The Los Angeles Lakers are officially out of the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes. Finally, the turmoil between the San Antonio Spurs and Kawhi Leonard has been put to rest.
For weeks there have been rumors about where he could end up but not many suspected Toronto would be the team to acquire him.
Spurs have agree to trade Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green to Toronto for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a protected 2019 first-round pick, league sources tell ESPN. Trade call with league office is starting shortly.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 18, 2018
Although Leonard made it clear his preferred destination would be Los Angeles, the Spurs front office ultimately did what they felt was best for the organization.
How does this trade affect the Lakers?
As of now, it doesn’t.
Regardless of what jersey Leonard wears next season, it won’t change the Lakers front office goals for the summer of 2019.
Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka will still make it one of their highest priorities next summer to sign Leonard.
At this point, the front office should continue to stay the course and approach the summer of 2019 with an aggressive attitude in terms of signing an All-Star to play along with LeBron James.
If Leonard doesn’t sit out the season and decides to play, the Lakers will watch from afar to make sure he’s still the player he once was. Let’s not forget that Leonard did suffer from a fairly serious thigh injury.
If the Lakers front office feels Leonard is too far from the All-Star he once was, expect them to pursue other top free agents without hesitation.
The Lakers have one goal in mind and that is championships. They don’t want to waste any of LeBron’s remaining prime years, so acquiring an All-Star that will contribute effectively is key.
Is there any chance Kawhi Leonard will be a Laker before next summer?
Your guess is as good as mine.
The Raptors are in a very interesting place now, here is my tweet before the trade:
Some seem to believe that although the Raptors could very well lose Kawhi to LA next summer, it could be looked at as the beginning of a rebuild for Toronto. In their eyes it seems to be a win/win.
— JR (@JRdee94) July 17, 2018
This move makes sense for the Raptors as I mentioned on Twitter. Although LeBron is now out of the East, they still have to deal with the Boston Celtics as well as the Philadelphia 76ers.
Keeping Leonard would be the best case scenario, but rebuilding isn’t the worst fall back option for them at this point.
There’s a small chance that the Raptors would agree to a buyout deal with Leonard but you never know. Simply put, the move wouldn’t make sense.
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As time goes on, it wouldn’t surprise me if stories break about Leonard not wanting to be apart of the Raptors and possibly even threatening to sit out the season.
It would be a bad look on Leonard’s part without question.
If the Raptors front office does look to eventually trade him, the Lakers may jump on that opportunity with the expectation of acquiring him at a lesser price.
I for one think the Lakers should just be patient until next summer and keep the young team together.
It’s going to be interesting to see how confident the Raptors are in terms of keeping Leonard and not losing him in free agency.
Next: 3 Reasons Not To Trade For Kawhi Leonard
Until then, expect the Lakers to keep a close eye on Leonard’s production next season.