It’s been a rough season for Kawhi Leonard. Owing to a right quadriceps injury, the small forward with the San Antonio Spurs had to sit out the first 27 games. Since then, he’s suffered further injuries and setbacks, though he also achieved some victories, including a season high against the Brooklyn Nets. In all, he only played 9 games during the entire season—one increasingly fraught with drama and uncertainty about the future.
Now it looks like it’s likely that Leonard will be traded away by the Spurs. Leonard and the team seem to have clashed regarding how his injuries should be managed, resulting in something of a falling out. And that’s putting it lightly,—the rift is apparently so wide now as to be irreparable. Leonard wants to leave, and it’s doubtful the Spurs want to deal with this issue any longer in spite of Leonard’s value.
A lot of teams are likely to think twice before making a bid for a player who has spent so much of the past season down and out—but it is potentially an excellent opportunity, especially for a team like the Chicago Bulls.
For one thing, the Bulls have the bargaining power to bring Leonard onboard. Indications are strong that Leonard wants to leave the Spurs, and the Bulls might have a shot at getting him if they offer a package deal, perhaps to include Zach LaVine. If they decide they want Leonard, it should be possible to get him.
For another, Leonard brings a lot of skills and attributes which the Bulls could use. He’s versatile and flexible and great at scoring in creative ways. He adapts to different situations on the court. He takes a balanced approach to the game, never neglecting offense or defense. Such a player would be easy to incorporate and would help to balance out existing shortcomings. Kawhi was also taking on more and more of a leadership role in the Spurs before his injuries. This too would be an asset to the young Bulls team.
These traits have combined to make Leonard one of the best players in the NBA—at least when he isn’t injured. Indeed, this was reflected in NBA 2K18, which assigned him the second-highest player rating last year. In fact, it will be fascinating to see how all of this plays out both in the real-life court and in NBA 2K19 news.
Will the Bulls trade for Leonard? It’s hard to say. There are multiple paths open to them at this point, and this is only one of them—but it is one well worth considering. Leonard’s injury problems could be ongoing, it’s true—and that would be unfortunate. But he could also very well make a full recovery. When he does, chances are good he’ll get right back to playing as one of the top athletes in the NBA. If the Bulls are smart, hopefully they’ll capitalize on that, and do so before another team jumps on the opportunity.
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9 Comments
He quit on his team. What a great mentor he would be for a young team. Should we bring back DRose too?
Ummm no i think we will pass on that one thank you very much…we had that nightmare with D-Rose awhile back no need to re-live it with Kawhi. Nothing against the dude he’s awesome but not worth the risk, to many injuries and rightnow our arrow is pointing up with our young guns. Dunn,LaVine,Lauri are a sweet young core plus with 2 first round picks, one in the top 10…yea we’ll hold off on that Kawhi talk!!!
Hell no don’t wan him
Pleeeeeeeeeease stop it with the wishful thinking Kawhi Leonard is not I repeat is not coming to Chicago he’s going the to LAL or LAC but I’m betting he’s going to LAL
He would be a great fit on any team. He would take Chicago to the playoffs immediately.
Pass he doesn’t wanna play until 2k19 comes out
If we do trade for Kawhi, it would likely cost us something along the lines of: LaVine, the Pelicans pick and something else (most likely cash considerations). With the 7th pick we would probably get Mikal Bridges or Mo Bamba if Orlando does Orlando things and takes Trae Young. That could leave us with
Pg) Dunn
Sg) Bridges
Sf) Leonard
Pf) Markkanen
C) Lopez (For now)
OR
Pg) Dunn
Sg) Nwaba (For now)
Sf) Leonard
Pf) Markkanen
C) Bamba
I’d take a proven commodity in Kawhi, who is making 18m per year (which is what I’ve seen a lot of people say should be the max we offer LaVine) over LaVine who looked good but is essentially a Drose 2.0 only slightly taller/better on defense. And also coming off the ACL injury
Leonard is a true superstar on both ends of the court. Bulls are going nowhere with current roster and 2 first round picks. Have to take the gamble Leonard will stay healthy. Agree with trading Levine if necessary. Bulls can draft a two guard.
The only difference between Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler is one played with the Tim Duncan Spurs. Same guy.