People around the league are now wondering whether the LA Clippers are intentionally delaying the Kawhi Leonard trade.
Many people around the NBA are now speculating about the motives of the Los Angeles Clippers for why the Kawhi Leonard trade with the Toronto Raptors hasn’t been made official yet.
“The Raptors, I’m told, are eager to consummate the trade after initially placing it on hold July 9 (to guard against a Leonard suspension or the outright voiding of his contract) and still firmly believe that the deal will happen as agreed upon and intended. Ditto for Leonard and his camp,” NBA insider Marc Stein wrote in his latest report.
“Yet the delay has naturally led some league observers to wonder aloud whether the Clippers are holding off — or considering something even more drastic — to spite Leonard for so readily accepting the league’s punishment rather than invoking his right to pursue an appeal. Any formal appeal within the NBA’s auspices in such matters, remember, must be initiated by the player in question rather than the team according to league by-laws.”
Kawhi Leonard trade not done yet
A week has passed since the NBA dropped the hammer on the Los Angeles Clippers, yet the Kawhi Leonard trade to the Toronto Raptors is interestingly still unfinished.
Both teams executed the deal back in July, but mutually agreed to hold it off to wait for the league’s investigation findings around the Clippers’ salary cap scandal. Now that sanctions were finally imposed, the deal hasn’t been finalized yet.
Per reports, the Clippers are still determining their new front office on an interim basis following the suspensions of Steve Ballmer, Gillian Zucker, and Lawrence Frank, which keeps the Leonard trade pending.
Clippers disappointed on Kawhi Leonard punishment
In the end, it’s not difficult to speculate about the possible hidden motivations of the Los Angeles Clippers for why Kawhi Leonard hasn’t landed yet with the Toronto Raptors.
As reported, the Clippers were reportedly furious and disappointed that Leonard only received a slap on the wrist amid the hefty punishment they received from the NBA.
Despite benefiting from the Clippers’ under-the-table endorsement deals, the league only ordered Leonard to pay a $700,000 fine as a punishment for the salary cap circumvention scandal.
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