The Kawhi Leonard saga has been one of the top NBA storylines all season. The San Antonio Spurs superstar has long been regarded as the best two-way player in the game, but he earned a new label in a rocky 2017-18 NBA season.
That would be none other than “bad teammate.”
It’s tough to come down too hard on Leonard, though. His camp didn’t think he was fully ready to return from a lingering quad injury. With free agency potentially just around the corner, it’s fair to wonder if he thought forcing the issue was bad for his future.
Nobody can know for sure, but after seeing Isaiah Thomas do something similar and almost certainly lose a ton of cash because of it, Leonard’s stance is understandable.
The issue is his organization, coaches, and teammates all chastising him for staying away from the team and ultimately suiting up for just nine games in a lost season.
Perhaps Leonard’s injury really was worse than the team doctors thought it was. Maybe Leonard was just protecting himself, too.
It’s also worth wondering if he simply wants out.
Whatever the case, there is mounting speculation over what Leonard’s future holds as he returns to San Antonio to meet with the Spurs’ brass:
ESPN Sources: Spurs All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard and advisor are in San Antonio. Leonard spent nearly six weeks in New York rehabbing his injury. For the moment, there’s no scheduled date to meet with Spurs’ brass.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) May 2, 2018
While a meeting should clear the air, there are two likely outcomes coming at us.
Either Leonard already wants out and he’s going to see where the Spurs would trade him, or he’s waiting for the Spurs to throw caution to the wind and offer him a supermax deal.
This is all about money in the long run, with some light sprinkling of loyalty, health, and respect.
If the Spurs trust Leonard’s health going forward and want to keep him, though, it seems like the ball is in their court. If not, perhaps any future meeting sparks Kawhi Leonard trade rumors even more than what we’ve already seen.
Nobody knows what will happen, which has given way to Kawhi Leonard prop bets at NBA betting sites like Bovada.
Bovada is one of our top recommended betting sites for NBA prop bets
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