With Paul George possibly remaining in OKC, the pressure is now reportedly beginning to mount on Magic and the Lakers to go land Kawhi Leonard. Landing Kawhi would likely cause a ripple effect and possibly result in landing LeBron James. With those expectations appearing, the pressure begins to mount while the odds are against LA.
As LeBron James remains hesitant to be the first superstar to decide on the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency, pressure is mounting for the Lakers front office to execute a trade with the San Antonio Spurs to acquire disgruntled All-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard, league sources told ESPN.
There’s a race to secure Leonard before James is faced with deciding whether to become a free agent on Friday, especially with concern that Oklahoma City’s Paul George is no longer assured of signing with the Lakers, league sources said.
With Paul George no longer a lock to join the Lakers, the front office has to act now to land Kawhi for the foreseeable future. The Spurs have also stated they do not want to trade Kawhi in the Western Conference to help out their rival. So, the trade pitch to RC Buford and company is even harder than just players.
It has been reported that Leonard wants to be in purple and gold anyway, but Kawhi is the key to get LeBron this offseason. Getting Kawhi first would also land the Lakers a longtime superstar for the future and would not have to bet on LeBron and Paul George signing to win games.
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