Aggressively pursue Kawhi Leonard should he opt out of his contract

All eyes will be on the Los Angeles Clippers in the postseason this year in the Western Conference not only because they have a real chance to reach their first ever NBA Finals, but because if they come up short of their ultimate goal once again, Kawhi Leonard could look to go elsewhere. 

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Leonard has a $34.38M player option for the 2021-22 season and if the Clippers lose in the playoffs shorto f the Western Conference Finals, the speculation is that he will opt out of his deal and listen to other offers from other teams. This does not mean he will immediately leave the Clippers, but the Miami Heat have always pursued Leonard and they will do so again given the opportunity. 

This time however, they are in a much better position as a franchise and have a lot to offer Kawhi Leonard in terms of winning and financials. If the Heat were to leverage both Goran Dragic and Andre Iguodala’s contracts and opt not to bring back Victor Oladipo, they would have more than enough cap space to bring in Kawhi Leonard. 

Not to mention, with Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, the Miami Heat would suddenly become one of the top teams not just in the Eastern Conference, but in the entire NBA. 

There has been mutual interest between Leonard’s camp and the Miami Heat before, so if Kawhi does opt out of his contract, expect the biggest threat to sign him away from the Los Angeles Clippers be the Miami Heat.