KawBye Leonard more like. When is this roosterlicker going to return? 
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that's strange I didn't say anything about licking or poultry
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SI seem to have a good read on it...
By ANDREW SHARP AND BEN GOLLIVER April 04, 2018
Andrew Sharp: That Houston win was very impressive, but how can we be expected to talk about the actual Spurs games when Kawhi watch continues to escalate every single week. So where are you on Kawhi watch? You can mention the Spurs if you like.
Ben Golliver: Look, all the ladies out there. If your husband wants to have an apartment in the city for work, that's a red flag. If he lives with you at a house but he says I need an apartment in the city for work... red flag. It's probably not for work. If Kawhi is leaving San Antonio to go back to New York again, to his apartment in the city in New York, that's a red flag.
I've been trying to do some digging on this and no one really seems to have a great idea of what's going on with Kawhi Leonard, but I do have one more theory I want to throw out for you, Andrew, and you tell me if you think this passes the smell test in terms of what's been going on. Because it's been a back and forth. It's almost like they're negotiating. "Is he going to be there?" "I'm coming back to San Antonio." "I'm going to a players' only meeting, things fall apart." "I'm out of there, I'm going back to New York." It's a real saga. So what if this is the situation... If you're Kawhi's people, your big concern is not compromising that supermax contract next summer, right? What if you get to a situation where you're like, 'Look guys, we know you want him back this season. You have a shot at the Western Conference finals if he plays. We understands that. But if he plays there's a risk of injury. We want to make sure that supermax is still going to be there for him this summer if he happens to get injured."
Doesn't that seem like a possible impasse, Andrew? If Kawhi's people put that to San Antonio and you're the Spurs, can you just automatically write that supermax contract no matter what happens to Kawhi? I mean, if that quad injury comes back again and he misses significantly more time and it adds on to this previous injury history, is Kawhi necessarily a no-brainer supermax guy when you've already seen what's happened to Blake Griffin, John Wall, even Russell Westbrook, to a certain extent? When you look at how huge those contract are, you have to at least pause for a little bit. So I can see a situation where at some point they said, "Hey, we want assurances on the supermax," San Antonio said no and then Kawhi's people said, "Cool, we can't bring him back." I could easily see that being the way it played out. What do you think?
Sharp: Well, I like that theory a lot, and I think it dovetails nicely with something that I heard last week when the Spurs were in D.C., where it was just someone spit-balling but basically theorizing that Kawhi trusted the Spurs when he came back during last year's playoffs and he physically hasn't been right for more than a year now. He trusted the Spurs when they said, "You're good to go, come back." And then he reinjured himself in that Warriors series, and it's possible that in Kawhi's mind he wasn't ready or he thinks he wasn't ready and he sort of connects the injury, even though to me it sort of looked like a freak accident. But basically the idea is Kawhi doesn't totally trust the Spurs' doctors, and it's possible that that's true in conjunction with him wanting a guarantee on the supermax deal that would be waiting for him.
Look, I totally agree, we've talked about this all season long. Those supermax deals hurt teams as much as they help them, and it wouldn't surprise me if the Spurs are sitting there kind of calling Kawhi's bluff to some degree. Or also saying, "Look, we really like you but we need to see you play before we commit $220 million to you over the next five years." That's a big ask even if Kawhi is healthy and dominant, but given the way this season has unfolded, I don't blame them at all for feeling a little bit reluctant.
Golliver: And, again, we're speculating here, but if you're San Antonio and you've kind of put this on the table it's a negotiation. You're saying, "Look, we're not going to give you that guarantee, but we would love to have you back on the court. We've paid you max-level money on your second contract, we've supported you throughout your career, guys like Manu are openly weeping in the press about you returning. Just come back and be a team player and trust us that we're going to work this out." And you can understand why that would be a reasonable position for them to take. And if Kawhi just says no or his people say, "No, we don't trust you. We want a guarantee," you can see why that would be an impasse. To me it's the most plausible theory that I've heard, and, again, it would also explain, to a certain degree, Kawhi's reluctance to talk about the situation, right? Because if he came out and said this is where we're at, that would not make him look good. People would say, "You've got to go earn your next contract on the court." I'm not saying that would be a fair interpretation, but that's what the public sentiment would be, don't you think?Comment -
Dont think he has the desire to playComment -
I think it's about money (as above) ...which makes the Spurs' championship odds interesting. If he's healthy to go, and he sees a Warriors team in front of him in the 1st round with no Curry, wouldn't it be tempting for him to go against Durant?Comment -
Mark Jackson calling him out live on air. Good stuff. No reason he should be in NY. Pr1(k!Comment -
He did have a sad life story but that no excuses for him not playing for team prideComment -
isnt he injuredComment -
What does that have to do with him being in New York?Originally posted by jtolerComment -
Pretty sure he's played his last game as a Spurs. They put ethics above winning in SA. Quality organisation.Comment -
Spurs have cleared him to play fwiw -weeks ago...Comment -
dont know but if youre injured you cant play, he hasnt been at the games for a while hasnt he? I find the whole thing funny because Rose got so much flack when he sat out because he knew he wasnt ready and Kawhi hasnt got 1% of that flack. who cares what a doctor says he isnt in your body.Originally posted by IBetYouComment
