The NBA Finals were a fever dream for commissioner Adam Silver as the Knicks and Victor Wembanyama delivered blockbuster ratings and returned a halo the league had been missing for years.
Now, though, this offseason could be marked by absolute chaos.
Monday morning indicated as much.
Reporting continued to trickle out about a Clippers-Raptors trade for Kawhi Leonard, while the results of the league’s investigation into the relationship among Leonard, the Clippers, and Aspiration appear imminent.
Also Monday morning, NBA veterans Malik Beasley and Ed Davis became the latest players indicted in the federal gambling probe that has also led to the arrests of Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, and Damon Jones.
And almost immediately after Beasley and Davis were indicted, ESPN reported that Draymond Green is declining his $27 million player option to enter free agency, giving the Warriors cap space to chase LeBron James as the organization attempts to chase one last ring with Stephen Curry.
What to make of each development?
End of Kawhi Era in L.A.?
The NBA has been investigating the Clippers’ relationship with failed environmental startup Aspiration for roughly nine months, with the saga hanging over the entire regular season.
Silver indicated at his pre-Finals press conference on June 3 that the investigation was close to concluding.
“I think we are close to the point now where I think we need to wrap this up, because you also need finality,” Silver said. “The team has to understand what situation they are going to be operating under, and so do the other 29 teams. So that’s where things currently stand.”
NBA teams can begin negotiating with free agents at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
Should the Clippers be found to have violated the collective bargaining agreement, Silver has the ability to fine the organization, strip it of multiple draft picks, or void Leonard’s contract, the latter of which is perhaps the most relevant.
Regardless of the ruling, if Leonard’s seven-year stint with the Clippers is over, it will be remembered more for what happened off the court.
Leonard has one year left on his current deal worth $50.3 million. In July, he is eligible for a two-year extension worth $123.7 million. On Monday, ESPN reported that the Raptors are the only team Leonard would sign a long-term extension with other than the Clippers.
While no NBA ruling has been made as of Monday afternoon, it’s hard to see the Clippers and Raptors being deep into talks without an indication that the league would approve a trade that includes his contract.
An NBA spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment on the Aspiration investigation or whether Leonard’s contract is tradeable.
Leonard led the Raptors to the 2019 championship in his lone year with the organization after requesting a trade from the Spurs.
He left to sign with the Clippers and hasn’t been back to the Finals since. Leonard turned 35 on Monday and is coming off a strong season in which he averaged 27.9 points per game in 65 games.
Two More Players Added to Betting Probe
Beasley and Davis became the latest players involved in the federal gambling probe, another off-court headache for Silver and the league. While the Aspiration saga is close to ending, the gambling probe will stretch into next season at a minimum.
Rozier’s case is set to go to trial in February 2027, while the judge in Billups’s case wants that trial to start in November. Jontay Porter, who pleaded guilty in July 2024, is still awaiting sentencing, and Beasley and Davis have yet to surrender to authorities as of Monday afternoon.
Their indictments extend the probe’s presence over the NBA, especially if their cases go to trial. While the NBA has fully cooperated with federal authorities, the case could threaten the league’s positive momentum and show the full scope of its gambling issues.
Silver was one of the first major advocates for widespread legalized sports betting after publishing an op-ed in The New York Times in 2014. In October, Silver said on The Pat McAfee Show that the league asked sportsbooks to pare down their prop betting options. Multiple U.S. sportsbooks have already eliminated prop bets for NBA players on two-way and 10-day contracts in light of Porter’s case. The NBA has also changed its injury report process with teams to have them update players statuses on game days. Silver has also said he wants more federal regulation in sports betting.
New-Look Warriors Superteam?
Leonard isn’t the only star who could be in a new uniform by summer’s end.
Green’s decision to elect free agency Monday makes Golden State the potential epicenter for free agency. ESPN reported the team is trying to sign both James and Anthony Davis to pair with Stephen Curry in the twilight of their careers. Davis is set to make $58 million this season, and finding the players to match his salary in a trade won’t be easy.
James and Green share an agent in Klutch’s Rich Paul, and both would have to take discounts to make a Big 4 work for the Warriors.
Should it become reality, the Warriors would be a fascinating experiment within the league and a likely ratings behemoth. The team would be assembling four players ages 33 and older to contend with the younger cores of the Spurs, Thunder, and Knicks. It would also mark an odd coda to the James-Curry battles that dominated the NBA last decade. Both players would team up to chase a fifth ring after Curry won three of his four against James, while James led the 2016 Cavaliers to a 3–1 upset over Curry’s Warriors for his most memorable title.
The Celtics are listening to offers for All-Star Jaylen Brown after failing to acquire Giannis Antetokounmpo in a package centered on him. Brown has one of the richest contracts in league history. He’s about to enter the third year of a five-year, $304 million supermax he signed back in 2023. In July, he’s eligible to have two years worth $142 million tacked onto the deal, which will pay him more than $70 million annually in his ages-33 and -34 seasons.
Brown is set to make $57 million next season. Similar to Davis, any team interested in trading for Brown might have to deplete its depth to match his salary in a trade, limiting his market.
