Spurs Engaged In Kawhi Trade Talks With Several Teams, Reportedly 'Covet' Celtics' Assets
By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- And so continues the Kawhi Leonard trade watch.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Spurs are "fully engaged" in trade talks for their disgruntled star as of Thursday morning. The trade talks that include the Celtics and Lakers, because those are the two teams that garner the most clicks and have the most to offer.
In a development that should shock no one, the Spurs "covet" the assets that Danny Ainge and the Celtics can offer up for the former NBA Finals MVP, according to Woj.
The Spurs are fully engaged in trade talks with several teams on Kawhi Leonard, including the Lakers and Celtics, league sources tell ESPN. Boston has long had the assets that the Spurs most covet in a potential Leonard trade.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 28, 2018
Marc Stein of The New York Times is also reporting that the Spurs are finally "ready" to move on from the two-time Defensive Player of the Year
This doesn't guarantee Kawhi Leonard is going to the Lakers this week -- since San Antonio could always trade him elsewhere and/or drag things out -- but league sources say of the Spurs: "They're ready" to move on from Kawhi
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 28, 2018
Translation: The Spurs want to get everyone else's best offer, and they want it now. Wojnarowski followed up his initial tweet by adding that the Spurs could play the "long game" with Leonard and try to mend their relationship, potentially even offering him the super-max next summer. So really, no one knows what the heck is going on. But things may happen, and they may happen soon (unless they don't). Got it?
The Celtics certainly have a bevy of trade offers they can send San Antonio's way. They can dangle Kyrie Irving (who can opt out after next season) if the Spurs want to go the star-for-a-star route, or Boston can load up a package featuring guards Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier (though the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett reported Wednesday that Brown and Jayson Tatum are untouchable) along with any one of their future first-round picks, along with additional players to match salary.
The big question is whether or not Ainge wants to do anything to a team that just got to the Eastern Conference finals without the services of Irving and Gordon Hayward. Does he want to stand pat this summer and see what a fully healthy Celtics squad can do next season, or is he looking to light off some more fireworks this offseason? Acquiring a player of Leonard's status would certainly fall under the latter.
Boston's extremely cautious on Leonard front. There's so much uncertainty w/ Leonard's future -- health, free agent desires, etc. Will Leonard be same player? That's hard to tell. Celtics don't have to make a risky trade and have no intention to do so. It's an interesting dance. https://t.co/gVECzgxrYM
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 28, 2018
Or, maybe the Spurs are just using the Celtics to try to get more out of other teams. It's in their best interest to play Boston's assets against everyone else's, and according to one report, it may be working.
Rumblings of a Godfather Lakers offer for San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard have rival teams wondering if anyone else can compete here. The latest summer of LeBron has officially begun...
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) June 28, 2018
For now, it appears all the pressure is on the Los Angeles Lakers to get a Leonard deal done sooner rather than later, if Magic Johnson wants to convince LeBron James to opt out of his contract and head west. The Spurs can drag out the Kawhi situation for as long as they want, but at the moment, it feels like they want all potential suitors to show their best hand.