The Golden State Warriors may have avoided a disaster in failing to trade for Kawhi Leonard, having reportedly reached out to the L.A. Clippers about a move for the All-Star forward before the deadline last month.
The ongoing NBA investigation surrounding Leonard, the Clippers and Aspiration could have already complicated things enough, let alone considering that the Warriors would have likely had to buy high on the 34-year-old.
Warriors may have avoided a disaster is failing to trade for Kawhi Leonard
Reporting on Golden State's eventual trade acquisition, Kristaps Porzingis, and his ongoing health concerns, ESPN's Anthony Slater and Ramona Shelburne also revealed on Friday that the franchise called the Clippers about a potential Leonard deal.
"In the lead up to the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 5, the Warriors checked in on Jaren Jackson Jr., Giannis Antetokounmpo and were among the teams to make a call about Kawhi Leonard when it appeared the LA Clippers might be open for business," Slater and Shelburne wrote.
Leonard could have been the type of star-level trade the Warriors needed to reignite their chances this season, having lost Jimmy Butler to a torn ACL in January that's subsequently seen them glued to a Play-In Tournament spot.
Leonard has had arguably the best year of his career from a statistical standpoint, averaging 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.0 steals, shooting an efficient 49.7% from the floor and 37.5% from 3-point range.
Not only has Leonard put up those incredible numbers, but he's actually been relatively healthy (by his standards) in playing 48 of the Clippers' 62 games. Combine those factors and the franchise would have been selling high on the 7x All-Star had they been willing to move him, especially given Golden State had an element of desperation following Butler's injury.
Downsides to Kawhi Leonard trade could have been significant
Despite the Aspiration investigation and Leonard's lengthy injury history, the Warriors would have likely needed to give up multiple first-round picks in a deal with their direct pacific rival. The upside would be getting another star to help become a playoff threat, albeit Golden State likely still wouldn't have been viewed as a top tier contender.
The downside could have been significant, particularly if one or two of those picks were beyond the Stephen Curry era. The Warriors already have enough older, injury-impacted players as it is, let alone adding another to the mix while giving up significant assets.
Perhaps it's the sort of risk they needed to make to rejuvenate themselves, but it was no promise of a deep playoff run and could have come at a cost that resulted in being a disastrous move.