Kawhi Leonard was traded to the Toronto Raptors at the start of July, putting an end to the Golden State Warriors' pursuit of the seven-time All-Star after they thought they had a deal in place at Febraury's mid-season deadline.
Except that may not neccessarily be the case.
The Leonard-to-Toronto trade was put on hold nine days later as the two teams await the outcome of the current investigation into potential salary cap circumvention. Now, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne has reported that Leonard may return to the Clippers in a shocking twist to a major offseason move.
Kawhi Leonard could return to the Clippers if trade fails to go through
Leonard departed Toronto for the Clippers as a free agent in 2019, and Shelburne believes the franchise would be content with bringing the star forward back into the fold for an eighth season if required.
"I can see a world in which Kawhi Leonard is back on the Clippers if this trade doesn't go through and the Clippers quite frankly are fine with that," Shelburne said during Thursday's episode of NBA Today.
It might be far too premature to discuss the Warriors re-entering the picture for Leonard, but at the same time it's now no longer completely impossible as the trade to the Raptors would have suggested.
In fact, reports that the investigation could drag on into 2027 is actually good news for Golden State if they wanted to explore a Leonard move again at next year's mid-season deadline. At that point they'll have Draymond Green's expiring contract, Kristaps Porzingis with only $3 million guaranteed on his 2027-28 deal, and Jimmy Butler's expiring at a point where he'd be returning from injury -- making the injured six-time All-Star far more desirable in a trade than what he appears now.
Kawhi Leonard returning to the Clippers could also hurt Golden State
While the Warriors potentially renewing interest in Leonard is an upside if he returned to the Clippers, it could also hurt Golden State in the interim given a direct pacific rival would suddenly become stronger again entering next season.
Despite an underwhelming offseason where they've brought back essentially the same roster, the Warriors can look at the Clippers as a team they can surpass in the standings next season. That becomes a far more difficult prospect if Leonard is back with the team, having averaged a career-high 27.9 points last season while finishing seventh in MVP voting.
The Warriors were reportedly close to acquiring Leonard in February until the Clippers pulled out of the deal, before the two sides met in the Play-In Tournament where Golden State claimed a thrilling comeback victory.
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