Six years after being universally praised for making a franchise-altering move when they signed Kawhi Leonard, the benefit of hindsight has turned the tide against the Los Angeles Clippers for their deal with the two-time NBA Finals MVP.

One rival general manager told ESPN’s Baxter Holmes that the original deal to bring Leonard to the Clippers “was a f–king disaster” now that we have seen how things have played out.

Holmes also noted interviews with more than two dozen people within the NBA, including former Clippers staff members, all conveyed “the same” message.

Leonard’s original deal with the Clippers was a three-year, $103 million pact in July 2019. However, his signing with them was contingent on the club being able to trade for Paul George.

George just finished the first season of his four-year, $136.9 million contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Clippers made the deal by sending five first-round draft picks, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Danilo Gallinari to Oklahoma City.

Even though that was regarded as a lot to give up, it was considered a fair deal for both sides. Leonard was coming off a season with the Toronto Raptors in 2018-19 when he looked like the best player in the NBA. George made the All-NBA first team and finished third in MVP voting with the Thunder that same season.

ESPN’s Kevin Pelton noted at the time the Clippers’ side of the deal was “worth the very real risk of giving up so many future first-round picks and swaps.”

If the Clippers could have gotten Leonard on his own, there probably wouldn’t have been many criticisms looking back because that only cost them the money they paid him.

The big problem is they gave up a future MVP as part of the George deal and one of the draft picks they traded was used by the Thunder to select Jalen Williams.

Gilgeous-Alexander has developed into arguably the best player at his age (27) in the NBA and just led the Thunder to their first NBA title. Williams, the No. 12 pick in the 2022 draft, made his first All-Star team and was an All-NBA third-team selection last season.

Meanwhile, the Clippers have paid Leonard nearly $243.8 million so far for him to play 266 games (301 including the playoffs). Holmes noted they have also faced two separate lawsuits involving tampering related to Leonard, fined “at least twice” by the NBA for a violation of league rules involving Leonard and at least three league investigations into the organizations involving Leonard.

One of those investigations came to light recently in the wake of allegations the Clippers circumvented the salary cap by paying Leonard for a no-show endorsement deal with a company that Clippers governor Steve Ballmer made a $50 million investment in back in 2021.

The Clippers do have a 180-86 record in games with Leonard on the court. That is a .677 winning percentage, which equates to around 56 wins in an 82-game season.

Unfortunately, the many injuries Leonard has suffered over the past six seasons have hindered the Clippers in the postseason. The 2024-25 season marked the first time he played a full playoff series since the first round of the 2021 playoffs against the Dallas Mavericks.

When you combine all of that with the many off-court situations involving Leonard, plus trading away Gilgeous-Alexander and the draft pick that became Williams, it’s hard to argue that anything really good has come of this six-year run for the Clippers.