SONTSports Staff
More and more we read about Kawhi Leonard the more and more fascinating he becomes and The Athletic put out a piece this morning that highlighted Kawhi’s free agency:
‘We have a deal ready. Are you in?’ Inside the Clippers pursuit of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George
-by @jovanbuha and @sam_amick, featuring additional reporting from NBA Insider @ShamsCharania https://t.co/hBS23CZWlQ pic.twitter.com/KE8ipg1TEC
— The Athletic NBA (@TheAthleticNBA) July 23, 2019
(The Athletic) – The code of silence was an unspoken rule.
But Leonard and his representatives made it clear: We have a way we handle business, and we expect the same. Leonard and his camp asked questions and received responses. Details shared in meetings, private and personal information on both sides, were to remain within the group. Leonard promised that to each team and expected the same, sources told Charania.
From their multiple conversations throughout the process, it was clear to the Clippers that trust, privacy and respect were important components of a productive partnership for Leonard.
“If you fuck this up, you’re done, you’re out,” one front-office executive involved in the process explained to The Athletic. “They didn’t say that, but that was the message. It was basically, ‘Look, we would appreciate discretion.’ Which means, ‘Keep your fucking mouth shut.’”
For the Clippers’ purposes, this was not a problem — secrecy was their preferred style long before this well-known request had been made.
“I truly believe that when Magic started telling the media about the meeting he had with Kawhi and Dennis, that sealed the fate of the Lakers,” a person involved in the process told The Athletic. “I think that right there was when Dennis and Kawhi decided we can’t trust the Lakers as an organization. And that was it. I think that was it for them
Well. I mean, did anyone actually think that Magic Johnson was going to be able to keep his mouth shut?
Magic Johnson has been an abstract disaster. It’s literally been amazing to watch how bad of a last 6 months Magic has had. From The Lakers disastrous season, to him quitting in the weirdest fashion and now to this. Magic needs to hide out from The Lakers organization a bit.
