Kawhi Leonard was one of the biggest targets in Free Agency this season and teams were doing everything they could to secure his services. In the end, it was between the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, and the Toronto Raptors but as we all know, Leonard chose the Clippers. Immediately after his decision was made, there were reports that Leonard's infamous Uncle Dennis was playing hardball with prospective teams, including the Raptors.
ESPN's Stephen A Smith gave some legitimacy to these reports while on First Take today as he said people around the league told him of Uncle Dennis' demands. Uncle Dennis allegedly asked teams for a wide variety of perks including houses and planes which would violate CBA rules.
“This is me putting on my reporter’s hat here,” Smith explained. “People in NBA circles are talking about this right now. Allegedly, the uncle, Uncle Dennis, was asking for a lot of stuff from the other teams. Houses, planes, sponsorship, guaranteed sponsorship money, just as an example. They’re throwing this stuff out there. I have no idea whether this is true or not. I’m not trying to cast any aspersions on Uncle Dennis. But people in NBA circles are talking about this as we speak.”
While none of these reports have been confirmed, this could be the reason why teams like the Raptors and Lakers felt as though they were cheated by Leonard. Either way, Kawhi got his contract and as far as he's concerned, that's all that matters.
