LOS ANGELES — LA Clippers All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard wasn’t ready to discuss his future with the team after Wednesday night’s season-ending loss to the Golden State Warriors as he heads into the final season of his contract.
“Let me cry about this loss a little bit more,” Leonard said when asked whether he could see a future with the Clippers, who moved All-Star guard James Harden and young center Ivica Zubac in February trades that left many wondering if they were embarking on a rebuild. “We’ll have our discussions when that time comes.”
Leonard is eligible, starting on the day after the NBA Finals, to extend his contract for two additional seasons. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, the maximum the Clippers can offer is $126.1 million over the two seasons.
But the Clippers didn’t fall off after those trades, becoming the first team in NBA history to finish the season 15 games over .500 after being 15 games under .500 at an earlier point of their season. LA went 36-19 to close the regular season — fourth best in the Western Conference during that span — after opening 6-21.
That start included a messy breakup with franchise legend Chris Paul, who was unceremoniously sent home from a road trip and later traded to Toronto in what was supposed to have been a retirement tour with his former team.
Paul eventually retired after the Raptors released him.
The episode with Paul was the nadir of a season that began on the wrong foot before it even started, as the team was embroiled in a scandal over an endorsement deal Leonard signed with a now-bankrupt former team sponsor, Aspiration.
Podcaster Pablo Torre reported before the season that former Aspiration employees said they believed Leonard’s endorsement was a way for the Clippers to circumvent the salary cap.
The NBA launched an ongoing investigation into Leonard’s deal with Aspiration in September.
Asked Wednesday night whether he knew the status of that investigation and how important a resolution would be for him, Leonard said:
“I never thought about it too much other than questions asked. You’ll have to ask the NBA, not me. I’m not the one doing the investigation. … I think we’re going to be in the clear. I’m not stressing it.”
The season-ending loss to the Warriors was noteworthy for another reason. In February, the Warriors were among the teams that called the Clippers to inquire about Leonard’s availability after the Harden trade, according to multiple sources. Though those talks fizzled, there is an expectation they could be revisited in the offseason, sources said.
If this was Leonard’s final season in Los Angeles, it was a great one. He averaged the most points per game in his career (27.9) and finished in the top 10 in field goal percentage, 2-point percentage and 3-point percentage. The Clippers were a plus-7.8 points per 100 possessions when he was on the court and a minus-6.9 when he was off. More important, Leonard played in 66 games, his second most since the 2016-17 season.
Wednesday night illustrated just how much the Clippers will need to add to the roster if they choose to build their team around him again this summer as the Warriors essentially devoted their defensive game plan to make it difficult for Leonard to score or affect the game. Leonard finished with 21 points but had only one made shot over the final 16 minutes. He also had five turnovers in the second half, his most in any half since 2019.
According to ESPN Insights, Warriors forward Draymond Green defended Leonard for 51 half-court matchups, most by any player in a game this season, and held Leonard to nine points on eight shots on those matchups.
“Draymond Green, Hall of Fame defender,” Leonard said. “It was hard to even get shots up.”
