Kawhi Leonard decided to take his talents to the LA Clippers this offseason and it seems like the teams that he spurned are beginning to leak stuff out to the public.
After Leonard signed last week, it was reported that he and his Uncle Dennis had always targetted the Clippers and never really considered any other team.
Via Toronto Star
During the playoffs, and even the Finals, sources indicate Kawhi and his adviser and uncle Dennis Robertson were focused on the Clippers, even as Toronto’s championship run unfolded. During the playoffs Robertson was overheard more than once in the post-game back-hall melees talking about leaving; even after Game 4 in Philadelphia, where Kawhi made the first of two shots in the series to save the season, and during the Finals. The Clippers planned to pair Kawhi with 76ers wing and Kawhi’s friend Jimmy Butler, and the Kawhi camp gauged Butler’s interest repeatedly. Sources indicate they were in contact even after the NBA Finals.
Both the Lakers and the Raptors have since complained that they felt “played” by Kawhi and his team during the free agency process.
I’ve heard complaints in the days after the signing. I heard complaints from the Lakers that they got played. I heard complaints from the Raptors that Kawhi came in and asked for the sun, the moon, the stars then left them at the altar
Today, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith dropped a bomb when he revealed that people within NBA circles are talking about some of the ridiculous demands Kawhi’s Uncle Dennis made during the recruiting process and how he may have violated the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement in doing so.
“This is me putting on my reporter’s hat here. People in NBA circles are talking about this right now: Allegedly, the uncle, Uncle Dennis, was asking for a lot of stuff from the other teams; houses, planes, sponsorship, guaranteed sponsorship money, just as an example. They’re throwing this stuff out there. All of those things are supposedly illegal in the collective bargaining agreement. I have no idea whether this is true or not. I’m not trying to cast any aspersions on Uncle Dennis, but people in NBA circles are talking about this as we speak. Why is that important? Because one could argue the reason why this story is out there right now about the Lakers and the Raptors feeling played wasn’t just because of what Uncle Dennis asked for, but they’re going to try to turn that around and parlay that into a question about what did the Clippers give up to get Kawhi Leonard. So in other words, you’ve got teams right now playing games with one another talking about they’re trying to point the finger at the Clippers saying, ‘let’s ask what the Clippers did to get Kawhi Leonard.’
All of this seems like someone is angry at Kawhi and is beginning to leak stuff out to the media to make him and his team look bad. I doubt anything will come out of this.