In case you have missed it, there were some additional rumblings about Kawhi Leonard in recent days. It sounds like the Toronto Raptors have emerged as a serious suitor and they’ve apparently made what is being called a “compelling” offer for him.
UPDATE: Overnight reports from several insiders (Woj, Shams, Chris Haynes) indicate that the Raptors and Spurs are working to finalize a trade as soon as Wednesday.
Per Brian Windhorst
“It’s way more likely now than it was a couple of weeks ago. If you’ve looked at the moves that have happened out there, the Sixers have tied up some of their cap space — they’ve moved forward. The Lakers have moved forward and used all of their cap space. The teams that would be used as facilitators for these deals — the Bulls, the Nets, and the Hawks — have all used their cap space,” Windhorst said, adding that since most teams are unwilling to part with their prime young players, the Raptors have “defaulted” to the top of list.
Does that mean that the Raptors are willing to give up someone like DeMarr DeRozan for a chance to sell Leonard on staying in Toronto long term? The Raptors have changed systems and coaches and may be willing to take a gamble on changing up their roster. Perhaps the example of Paul George staying in OKC enough to embolden them to risk it.
Still, the other risk with Kawhi is his health. Teams don’t know what they are getting with him since he has hardly played in the last year. To that end, it sounds like Leonard is considering giving everyone a sneak peak at his physical condition. Per ESPN
San Antonio Spurs star Kawhi Leonard is seriously considering participation in the USA Basketball national team’s minicamp in Las Vegas next week, an event for the embattled All-NBA forward to showcase the status of his recovery to prospective trade partners, league sources told ESPN.
That would be big.
If Kawhi Leonard participates in USA Basketball's minicamp, you can bet every team interested will find a way to watch. My sense, Leonard's injury scares teams more than his contract status.
— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixYS) July 17, 2018
So if Leonard looks fully healthy (if that sort of thing could be proven in a minicamp environment) and other teams start to up their bids, do the Celtics up their bids? Thus far reports have been that the Celtics starting 5 is off the table and they have largely focused their bids on pick-heavy packages. We’ll see if that changes as this plays out.
It kind of feels like this will drag on for a while, as these things tend to do. Remember that Kyrie Irving wasn’t traded to Boston until August last year.
(Narrator voice: It did not drag on for a while)