LeBron James' move to the Philadelphia 76ers has brought heavy criticism on the Golden State Warriors inability to land big-name players in recent years, but they've actually caught a lucky break with Kawhi Leonard after nearly pulling off a blockbuster move at February's mid-season deadline.
According to ESPN's Baxter Holmes on Wednesday, the NBA's ongoing investigation into Leonard, the L.A. Clippers and potential salary cap circumvention could drag on into 2027 if the parties involved can't agree on the findings and proposed resolutions.
Warriors have caught lucky break with Kawhi Leonard
This update puts some more uncertainty over Leonard's future, with the Clippers having traded the two-time Finals MVP back to the Toronto Raptors at the end of last month, only for the two sides to put the deal on hold nine days later as the investigation continues.
While the two teams remain insistent that the trade will go through, it does make for an awkward period for the Raptors who moved on from two-time All-Star Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick as part of the trade.
The Warriors can count themselves lucky that they're not in Toronto's position, albeit who knows what the current situation would be had Leonard been traded to the Bay (or elsewhere) in February and had played out the end of last season with a new team.
Perhaps that factored into the Clippers' decision to keep Leonard at that stage after trading James Harden and Ivica Zubac, before their season came to and end at the hands of Golden State in the Play-In Tournament.
Warriors thought they had a trade for Kawhi Leonard
After focusing all their attention for weeks on a blockbuster trade for then Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Warriors made a late but strong push for Leonard before the mid-season deadline.
The San Fransisco Standard's Tim Kawakami has reported numerous times since on just how close the Warriors were to acquiring Leonard, only for the Clippers to pull out of the talks after much of the deal had been agreed to.
It wouldn't be the first time the Clippers have actually done their pacific rival a favor when it comes to trade talks in recent years. Golden State were prepared to give Paul George a max contract in a sign-and-trade back in 2024, but the Clippers had no interest in the returning pieces and preferred to let the nine-time All-Star walk for nothing as a free agent.
George certainly hasn't justified the four-year, $221.6 million deal he ultimately signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, though they were able to incredibly trade the 36-year-old to the Boston Celtics in a shock trade for Jaylen Brown at the start of this month, which then helped them sign James last Friday.
Only time will tell what the result of this investigation will be and the potential punishments handed to the Clippers and/or Leonard, but the Warriors are likely sitting back thankful that they dodged a complicated situation.
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