NBA exec: ‘The Lakers dodged a massive bullet by not getting Kawhi’

The Los Angeles Lakers were very interested in signing Kawhi Leonard in 2019 when the two-time Finals MVP was an unrestricted free agent.

Leonard not only met with the Lakers, but he also had discussions with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

However, Leonard spurned the Lakers for the Los Angeles Clippers, who signed the small forward to a three-year, $104 million contract and acquired Paul George from the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Not only has Leonard’s stint with the Clippers been underwhelming, but the future Hall of Famer and LAC are under investigation from the NBA again.

According to Pablo Torre, Leonard allegedly received a contract from a now-bankrupt company, Aspiration, that paid him $28 million to do nothing. The $28 million didn’t count against the Clippers’ salary cap, making it illegal.

In the wake of Leonard’s latest NBA investigation, a league exec told Lakers Daily that the Purple and Gold “dodged a massive bullet” by Leonard choosing the Clippers in 2019.

“The Lakers wanted Kawhi badly,” the NBA exec said. “Boy, they dodged a massive bullet by not landing him. You think Rich [Paul] and LeBron are hard to deal with? Uncle Dennis (Dennis Robertson) is even worse. He thinks Kawhi is the second coming of Jesus.

“The Lakers dodged a massive bullet by not getting Kawhi. The guy barely plays, doesn’t market the team he’s on and now he’s in the news for the wrong reasons for the second time since signing with the Clippers. This has been a huge headache for Ballmer and Co.”

Leonard’s uncle and chief business partner, Dennis Robertson, asked teams for improper benefits in 2019, according to The Athletic. Jeanie Buss and the Lakers were not interested at all in giving Robertson and Leonard what they wanted, sources told Lakers Daily.

A top-75 player of all time, Leonard has appeared in 266 regular-season games and 35 playoff games with the Clippers, who have never made the NBA Finals in franchise history. LAC was up 3-1 on the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the 2020 playoffs, but Leonard, George and Doc Rivers blew a 3-1 series lead.

The 34-year-old Leonard signed a three-year, $149.5 million extension with the Clippers in January 2024.