Kawhi Leonard might be on the move. NBA insider Chris Haynes reported this week that the Los Angeles Clippers will look to trade Leonard if they cannot get a contract extension done this summer, and the situation is moving fast.
The numbers tell part of the story. Leonard is set to earn $50.3 million in 2026-27, the final year of his three-year, $149.5 million deal signed in January 2024. ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported on The Hoop Collective that the Clippers want Leonard to take a pay cut on a new contract. That is not the kind of offer that closes quickly.
Haynes noted that formal extension talks have not started yet between the Clippers and Leonard’s camp. The team wants to wait until after the draft is over to lay out its plan based on how the offseason board shakes out.
Meanwhile, the rest of the league is circling. Shams Charania reported that multiple teams are monitoring Leonard over the coming weeks. The Golden State Warriors have been the most publicly aggressive suitor, with multiple reports linking them to a potential package.
The complication is Steve Ballmer. NBA insider Anthony Slater reported that the Clippers owner has maintained a firm stance against trading Leonard despite inquiries from rival teams. Ballmer wants to keep building around his star forward. The question is whether that position holds up if Leonard refuses the pay cut.
From a basketball standpoint, Leonard earned the leverage. He had one of the best seasons of his career in 2025-26, averaging 27.9 points on 50.5 percent shooting with 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 65 starts. He finished seventh in MVP voting. That is not the production profile of a guy you ask to take a discount.
The Clippers’ bind is the rest of the roster. James Harden’s free agency status is murky, the core is aging fast, and the team has just enough talent to make the playoffs and lose in the first round again. Letting Leonard walk for nothing would be franchise malpractice. Trading him is the only outcome that returns real value.
The most likely trade fit on paper is the Warriors, who have the wing depth, the picks, and the desperation to swing a big deal while Steph Curry is still playing at an elite level. Whether Ballmer is willing to send Leonard up the coast to a rival is a different conversation.
If the extension talks go nowhere and Ballmer finally relents, the Leonard market will be one of the wildest of the summer. Teams like the Sixers, Heat, and Mavericks have all been mentioned at various points as potential bidders, depending on how aggressive each franchise wants to get.
The Clippers have run this play before. Two years ago, the Paul George decision came down to the wire and ended with George leaving for Philadelphia. Ballmer cannot afford to lose another star for nothing.
The next few weeks are going to define the Clippers’ next half decade. Either Leonard signs an extension at a number that works for everyone, or the trade machine fires up and Los Angeles enters a different era entirely.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
