Kawhi Leonard has struggled together with his well being all through his tenure with the L.A. Clippers. He was not too long ago despatched dwelling from Group USA’s coaching camp as he continues to take care of a persistent knee downside. Leonard signed a three-year, $152.4M contract extension towards the tip of final season.
Throughout a current look on ESPN’s “NBA At the moment,” former NBA champion Kendrick Perkins advised the Clippers ought to commerce Leonard.
“I believe Steve Ballmer, he must have an analysis, proper?” Perkins mentioned. “You could have Ty Lue; you simply signed him to a contract extension; he is there for the lengthy haul … They want to enter a rebuild mode. If I had been the Clippers, I might actually contemplate buying and selling Kawhi Leonard. As a result of they’re caught within the center proper now … Kawhi Leonard has set them again 10 years … If I am the Clippers, I really feel like I ought to contemplate buying and selling Kawhi and rebuilding.”
When wholesome, Leonard is without doubt one of the most gifted gamers within the NBA. He is elite on either side of the court docket. Nonetheless, his well being has been a big subject since he arrived in Los Angeles. If the Clippers cannot depend on him to be wholesome when it counts, they need to definitely check the marketplace for Leonard’s providers across the NBA.
Ballmer has accomplished every thing he can to uplift the Clippers group. They transfer into the Intuit Dome for the upcoming marketing campaign. As such, they’ll lastly cease sharing an enviornment with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Clippers followers would undoubtedly just like the opening years of their tenure in Inglewood to be aggressive. Nonetheless, if the good transfer is to start tearing the roster down and rebuilding from the bottom up, the entrance workplace should discover that avenue.
Proper now, Leonard’s well being is instantly tied to the Clippers’ possibilities of success. That is not a sustainable enterprise mannequin for the franchise, and it is unfair to place that sort of weight on Leonard’s shoulders.
Perkins might have a degree. Maybe Leonard’s time with the Clippers has run its course.
