Kawhi to the Knicks? It was never going to happen.

I have seen a lot of people on Twitter commenting on how it was stupid for the Knicks to pass up the meeting with Kawhi—aka “the Klaw,” aka “Fun Guy,” aka “Board Man gets paid”— Leonard, and it is actually comical how people just want to put down the Knicks without really diving deep in the Knicks’ situation. The phrase “Knicks for clicks” (started by @KnicksCentral) refers to the adorable trend of making the Knicks the butt of NBA fan jokes (especially with James Dolan at the helm), but I just don’t think there’s a legitimate punchline here. Let’s dive into why it was unlikely that the Knicks were in the realm of possibility of landing Kawhi at the end of the day, and that it was a smart move to move on prematurely.

Kawhi Leonard is the first player in NBA history to join a new team right after winning Finals MVP pic.twitter.com/bXg3l2A6XG

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 6, 2019

For starters, let us remind ourselves that Kawhi was seriously considering the Raptors, Lakers, Clippers, and then, potentially the Knicks as possible landing spots for this free agency. 

The Raptors: The Raptors were serious contenders in retaining Kawhi because for one, they just won the championship with him as their leader.  Raptors were capable of keeping Kawhi because of confidence that they would have been able to run it back another year with the same roster that just won the championship.  In addition, Toronto is a large market where Kawhi could have further established his brand. Lastly, the Raptors were very successful in maintaining Kawhi’s load management by making sure that he was refreshed and capable of preforming at his max throughout the playoffs.

The Lakers:  The Lakers were contenders for Kawhi given their talent. Kawhi was well aware that if he signed with the Lakers he, LeBron, and Davis were probably set to be the best “Big 3” we ever saw established in NBA history.  Of course, the Lakers are also THEfranchise of Los Angeles and are located in one of the largest markets, for sports and entertainment.  With the huge popularity of the Lakers in their home city, and the power of local industry, Kawhi would have been able to establish a strong brand.  Lastly and importantly, Kawhi is from LA and according to many sources who are plugged into the NBA, Kawhi wanted to be close to his family. 

The Clippers: The story ends with the Clippers winning the Kawhi race. They were a serious and ultimately the best option because they were able to make the playoffs in the 2018-19 season with a lot of youth, solid role players, and a well-seasoned championship winning coach in Doc Rivers in a stacked Western Conference.  Like the Lakers (their competitors and roommates at Staple Center), they are located in a major market city, and although they may not be as popular in LA, they are positioned to build Kawhi’s brand.  Of course, Kawhi is now able to come home.  All in all, the major trade-off for this LA team over the other was the star talent and a premier brand for a young, solid team where he can shine as a clear leader. 

The Knicks: Last, but certainly not least (especially in my eyes), the Knicks had very little to offer Kawhi. The Knicks selling points at the time prior to the beginning of free agency were that they had two max contract slots, giving them the capability to pair Kawhi with any free agent he wanted, and they are located in one of the best cities and largest markets in the world. These two selling points alone were a stretch to convince Kawhi to come play for the Knicks.  These benefits were countered by the fact that the Knicks were in the beginning stages of a rebuild, with no established talent for Kawhi to play next to that would help compete for the playoffs.  The fact that they were a 17-win team this past season was probably not very compelling either.  

So, the Knicks passed on meeting with Kawhi Leonard.  Overall, the Knicks were never in the spot to compete for signing him in the first place as we saw this past Sunday (June 20, 2019), they were unable to attract Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, or any other of the marquee players.  With all of those free agents passing on our team, and rumors that the Knicks were last on the list for Kawhi to visit, why wait for rejection? The Knicks exercised good judgement in passing on the meeting, ideally to focus on signing serviceable free agents that can help during the rebuild process (welcome aboard Julius Randle). 

As you can tell, I am fine with acknowledging the Knicks’ shortcomings in Kawhi’s deliberations. We have a long way to go, and we get it, we’ve been in the basement for the past twenty years.  But, I do believe that the franchise is making smart decisions this season and that NBA fans need to chill with their overplayed “Knicks for Clicks.”  Such is the life of being a Knicks fan.