It certainly looks like the Kawhi Leonard situation might be coming to a head at some point soon. A report earlier on Thursday noted that the San Antonio Spurs are ready to move on from Leonard, leading to what should be a trade here in the coming days.
This isn’t necessarily a surprise given that Leonard has made it known he wants out of San Antonio. It also shouldn’t be considered a surprise that the Spurs are now “fully engaged in trade talks with several teams,” according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Spurs are fully engaged in trade talks with several teams on Kawhi Leonard, including the Lakers and Celtics, league sources tell ESPN. Boston has long had the assets that the Spurs most covet in a potential Leonard trade.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 28, 2018
Woj specifically mentions the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics as two of the teams. After initially being shut down by the Spurs in trade talks surrounding Leonard, Los Angeles has reportedly re-engaged with San Antonio in conversations.
If the Lakers are able to swing a deal for Leonard, it would help in their pursuit of LeBron James once free agency starts. It’s in this that any deal between Los Angeles and San Antonio might actually be completed prior to the start of free agency this weekend.
On the other hand, Boston has all sorts of assets to offer up San Antonio in a potential trade. That includes youngsters Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum as well as multiple future first-round picks.
Among the teams not mentioned specifically by Woj, it’s been noted that the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers have shown interest in Leonard.
Buckle up, buttercups. It’s going to be an active next several days on this front.