The Los Angeles Clippers have overachieved this season despite moving on from James Harden and Ivica Zubac at the trade deadline.
Much of the credit for the Clippers’ success belongs to All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard, who is having one of the best campaigns of his career at 34 years old. Given Los Angeles is multiple pieces away from seriously contending in the Western Conference, the front office may push further toward a rebuild this offseason by trading Leonard.
Kawhi Leonard Predicted To Land With Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are another West team that has exceeded expectations in the 2025-2026 season, as they are the No. 7 seed in the conference with a record of 40-33.
To elevate their chances of contending for a title in the coming years, Bleacher Report predicts them to make an all-in trade for Leonard this summer. The proposed trade details are as follows:
Suns receive:Â Kawhi Leonard
Clippers receive:Â Jalen Green, Khaman Maluach, Rasheer Fleming and 2027 first-round pick (via CLE, MIN or UTA)
“The Suns have overachieved this season, but there’s a cap on how high this core can climb without assistance from the front office,” B/R’s Zach Buckley wrote. “Devin Booker is awesome, but his contending window will never open when his best sources of scoring support are a defensive stopper (Dillon Brooks), a quantity-over-quality chucker (Green) and a shooting specialist (Grayson Allen).”
As previously mentioned, Leonard is having one of the best seasons of his illustrious career. He is averaging a career-high 28.3 points to go along with 6.3 rebounds and 2.0 steals on 50.4% shooting in 58 games played. A duo of him and Booker could make serious noise even in the loaded West.
Green is the headliner of this return package for the Clippers. He is in the midst of a three-year, $105 million contract.
Buckley continued, “L.A. could hope to return more from Leonard, but again, there are reasons that potential trade suitors could seek out a dented-can discount. Beyond that, this feels like the kind of package a team that just got much younger at the deadline could covet.”
Both teams have a clear path forward by agreeing to this trade. The Clippers kickstart a rebuild while the Suns make yet another championship push headlined by Booker.
