NBA Rumors: Could Kawhi Leonard Resort to Sitting Out a Season If He's Not Traded by the San Antonio Spurs?
Recent rumblings have hinted that Leonard is set on becoming a member of the Los Angeles Lakers and no longer wants to play for the Spurs
Some of the big dominoes have already fallen this offseason, with Paul George deciding to stay with the Oklahoma City Thunder and LeBron James choosing to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers.
One important situation that has not been resolved yet, however, is the one involving Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs.
Leonard reportedly still wants out of San Antonio, while the Spurs are supposedly unwilling to take anything less than their ideal trade package for him.
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Because Leonard is still under contract for one more season with the Spurs, there's a chance that this situation may not be resolved for a while.
If this whole matter continues into the season, however, noted NBA insider Stephen A. Smith has hinted that things could get very interesting.
Appearing on ESPN's SportsCenter to discuss the Lakers adding James, Smith also took a bit of time to talk about the latest happenings with Leonard.
Some executives spoken to by Smith told him not to dismiss the possibility that Leonard could sit out the upcoming season given the things that happened this past season.
Smith did clarify that those sentiments came from people around the league and not from Leonard or anyone in his camp. It's possible that those executives may have just been making educated guesses themselves.
It is worth noting that just last week, there were rumblings that Leonard wants absolutely no part of staying with the Spurs, with ESPN NBA announcer Alvaro Martin passing along information from league sources, who said that the 27-year-old forward does not want to step into the team's locker room again.
It certainly seems as though Leonard and the Spurs are not on good terms at the moment, but even so, sitting out a season would be quite extreme even for a player like him.
Leonard would risk being branded as a selfish player if he decides to sit out a season and that is presumably not something he would want.
At this point, it's still hard to tell how this matter between the Spurs and Leonard will be resolved, but it's unlikely to involve Leonard spending a full year away from the court.
