If the Clippers are trading James Harden, they might as well explore Kawhi Leonard deals too

The Los Angeles Clippers seem like they're going to trade James Harden. It hasn't happened yet, but rarely does reporting like what came out on Monday night pass without a deal following. ESPN reported that Harden is working with the Clippers on finding a deal. Sports Illustrated says they've had advanced conversations with the Cavaliers. One way or another, it certainly seems like this is happening.

And if it does? Well, that signals one thing: the Clippers are punting on the 2025-26 season. Say they make the rumored swap for Darius Garland. Aside from being a worse player than Harden currently, Garland is currently out dealing with a toe injury. That injury has bothered him all year. It bothered him last year too. At 26 years old, he would be one of the new long-term pillars for the Clippers. They would presumably treat him with caution for the rest of this season as they chart a new course.

James Harden trade landing spots: Cavaliers have compelling offer, but what about Rockets reunion?

Sam Quinn

The Clippers started the season 6-21. Harden was their only consistent positive at that point in the year. He has been one of the two pillars of their 17-5 run ever since. The other is Kawhi Leonard. So I'm going to ask a simple question: if the Clippers are trading Harden, what exactly is the point of keeping Leonard?

Leonard is 34 years old. He has been, despite the absolutely bonkers decision by Western Conference coaches to leave him off of the All-Star roster, no worse than a top-10 player in the NBA over the past two months. He is also among the most injury-prone stars in NBA history. He is currently being investigated for possible salary cap circumvention. In September, Baxter Holmes reported for ESPN that one staffer said that "they're done building around" Kawhi after his contract expires following the 2026-27 season.

The motivation for keeping Leonard would, essentially, be optics. The Clippers don't want to send the Thunder an embarrassingly high lottery pick this year or next, though having ascended into the Western Conference Play-In bracket, that likely won't be an issue at least in 2026. The bottom five teams in the West (the Grizzlies, Mavericks, Jazz, Pelicans and Kings) all appear to be moving toward a tank. Perhaps keeping Leonard could make next year's team better, but nobody in this building should have illusions about contention. The Clippers are devoid of assets and waiting for cap space. If they can trade Leonard for any sort of positive value now, while he's still healthy and playing at a star level, they should probably do it. What do they really have to tangibly gain by winning a few more games next season?

A Leonard trade would be an enormously complicated endeavor. He's owed $50 million this season, and he only really makes sense for win-now teams. How many teams like that have $50 million lying around to match money for him? Hanging over all of this is that impending Aspiration investigation. No team is trading for Leonard if there's any risk that his contract is voided. They would have to get assurances that the league office may not be equipped to make. Perhaps an arrangement could be made in which any draft picks traded for Leonard get returned if the Clippers are punished in that investigation. We're in uncharted waters here. The league would likely act cautiously, but we truly don't know what's going on behind the scenes.

But where there's risk, there's opportunity. Players this productive are practically never available, and when they are, they're attached to an onerous contract. Sure, someone could probably go swipe Joel Embiid right now, but nobody is risking paying him through 2029. Leonard only has one guaranteed season left on his contract. Worst-case scenario, a trade goes south this year and he's a big expiring deal to be dangled at next year's deadline. The risk, at least depending on the cost of the deal, would be minimal.

We know what the reward looks like. The Raptors traded for Leonard on an expiring contract in 2018 and won the championship in 2019. If you can just squeeze six healthy months out of him, he is absolutely still good enough to swing the 2026 title. The question here is... for whom?

Potential Leonard landing spots

We'll start with Leonard's likely preference: the Lakers. He's made it perfectly clear he wants to be in Los Angeles, after all, and the Lakers can accommodate. There's virtually no chance the Lakers give up meaningful draft pick value for Leonard. Perhaps the Clippers could finagle a single first-round swap, but the Lakers have been planning for 2026 cap space and have thus far resisted taking on contracts that extend beyond this season at the deadline. Leonard is good enough to warrant an exception. The Lakers have $40 million in easily movable expiring salaries in Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber and Gabe Vincent. If the Clippers want to emphasize 2026 cap space, the Lakers can help.

How about a return to the Raptors? The money is the hardest part to figure out. The Raptors would either have to give up multiple starters -- all on longer deals than the Clippers would probably prefer -- or this would have to be a severely unbalanced trade. Still, the Raptors could use more offensive punch. They've been linked to every big name under the sun this deadline cycle. If they can get Leonard, they go from plucky regular-season upstarts to genuine Finals threats.

How aggressive does Houston want to be at this deadline? The Rockets could pursue a reunion with Harden ... or they could swing for the better Clipper in Leonard. The Rockets have $38 million in money owed to plays out for the season in Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams. Throw in Dorian Finney-Smith and they have the contracts to reach Leonard. They also have picks to entice the Clippers if need be. VanVleet has the right to veto any trade, but he'd likely welcome a trade to the Clippers just because of all of their impending cap flexibility. They'd likely be open to a longer-term extension. Leonard once tried to recruit Durant to join him with the Clippers. Put them together on the Rockets with these athletes and defenders and they'd be a nightmare for the rest of the Western Conference. The Rockets probably need a point guard more than a shotmaker ... but man is it tempting.

The Timberwolves could match money with Julius Randle, Mike Conley, Rob Dillingham and Bones Hyland, provided the Clippers want to take a look at Dillingham's upside or view Randle as a possible fit alongside Ivica Zubac and whoever they get for Garland. Good luck scoring on a team that starts Leonard, Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards, and Leonard and Edwards would form a lethal scoring duo late in games.

The Pistons have been linked to Michael Porter Jr. at this year's deadline. What is Leonard if not the ultimate version of Porter? Is he not exactly the shotmaker they're looking for? Would he not slot perfectly within their ferocious defense?

We could frankly do this all day. Kawhi Leonard, the basketball player, fits on basically any roster. Just not the revamped one the Clippers are seemingly pivoting toward. There are a million possible complications here. His contract could squash a deal. The Clippers could get greedy on assets. The league office might step in based on whatever's happening in the Aspiration investigation. Leonard himself may squash any trade that sends him to an undesirable location.

But the inevitable Harden trade makes plain what we've known for months: this era of Clippers basketball is ending. Why fight it? If there's any positive value out there for Leonard, the Clippers have no good reason not to take.