Recent Lakers rumors are that there was no way Kawhi Leonard was going to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers.
With free agency coming settling down, recent Lakers rumors have still been about Kawhi Leonard.
The Lakers made the decision to make a strong run at Kawhi Leonard, as it looked like they had a strong chance of landing him. With LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and a max contract available, the Lakers certainly made a lot of sense for Leonard.
However, recent reports are that there was really no shot that Leonard was going to sign with the Lakers according to Marc Stein of The Undefeated.
"“A source told The Undefeated early last week that there was ‘no way’ Leonard was going to sign as a free agent with James, Davis and the Lakers despite speculation they were the front-runners.”"
This is certainly pretty surprising news, as the Lakers really put all of their eggs into that basket. While the Lakers certainly did a nice job rounding out the roster around LeBron and Davis, the ultimate goal was to have three superstars.
Now, the Lakers will be competing with Leonard on the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers went all-in for Leonard as well, as they traded a ton of assets to the Oklahoma City Thunder to acquire Paul George.
Leonard certainly seemed set on playing with at least one other All-Star, but if the report is right, the Lakers were never truly considered. With Leonard now playing for the Clippers, this sets up an excellent rivalry in the Staples Center.
Fans of the Lakers will surely be loud an vocal when they play against Leonard, as many feel like he should have signed with their team. Furthermore, Leonard will be looking to continue his legacy as the face of the franchise with the Clippers. This is something that might have been challenging for him to accomplish with LeBron and Davis.
Having the Clippers being ultimately his team might have been a very important part of the decision making for Leonard. However, he will have to run through the Lakers if he wants to win another title.