Top Western Conference Team Almost Landed Kawhi Leonard At The Trade Deadline

Despite all of the criticisms over his load management in recent years, Kawhi Leonard has continued to play at an incredibly high level when he's been healthy. While that time has certainly been limited, Leonard has been great for the Clippers, and in 2025/26, he's finally stayed healthy and appears ready to be, at the very worst, second-team All-NBA at seasons end.

In recent times, the Clippers have managed to turn things around significantly, and despite a rough start to the season, they've clinched a play-in spot with a record of 39-38. Things could have been much, much different however, as the team were sellers at the 2026 trade deadline, and according to reporter Tim Kawakami, they almost dealt Kawhi to the Golden State Warriors too.

As he reports however, when things got close, the Clippers ended up pulling out, and while details surrounding the package aren't clear, it would have been an incredible move for the Warriors to land another two-way star to play with Steph Curry.

On top of that, there's no doubt questions over Leonard's future given the drama that surrounded him over the summer, making the Clippers decision to pull out of trade talks even more surprising. Ultimately, it's expected that if Leonard's contract isn't void this summer, there will be plenty more interest in acquiring him, and with the Warriors core of Curry, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler, don't be shocked to see them aggressively pursue him again.