Kawhi Leonard Is the Only Winner Coming Out of the Cap Circumvention Saga

The Kawhi Leonard era in Los Angeles has ended with a bang. As the 35-year-old superstar heads to Toronto to join the Raptors, he is leaving behind an utter mess in LA.

The Clippers were dealt the most severe punishment in NBA history for circumventing the cap in their dealings with Leonard. It will take them a long time to bounce back. In the immediate future, they have a ton of important questions to answer.

While the Clippers are mired in uncertainty and a deeply challenging situation, Leonard has emerged unscathed from the year-long investigation. In fact, one could argue that he is the only winner in this mess.

Kawhi Leonard Gets Away With It All, Much to the Chagrin of Clippers Fans

Leonard got away with a slap on the wrist. He will pay $700,000 to the league in restitution for improper benefits. That is chump change for a player of his caliber. He avoided any suspension or voiding of his contract.

Now, the sports media is already doing Leonard's bidding to clear his name of any wrongdoing. ESPN's Shams Charania already went on TV and said that Kawhi didn't have any knowledge of the salary cap circumvention. Given the fact that Pablo Torre has revealed documentation that shows Leonard's signature on a contract with Aspiration, this is obviously untrue.

Plus, regardless of how wealthy you are, could you really not notice if you had millions of dollars coming into your bank account for an endorsement deal from a company that you did nothing for?

But Leonard clearly played this the right way. Before the conclusion of the investigation, he fired his uncle and business representative, Dennis Robertson. In his statement after the punishment was announced, he basically admitted that there were some shady dealings, but it was done by people in his "inner circle."

Now, Leonard gets to make $50.3 million next season and play for a title contender in Toronto. He is eligible for an extension and will almost certainly get a multi-year contract paying him around that annual salary.

This isn't to say that Kawhi should have gotten penalized more severely. The NBA seemingly didn't want a fight with the Players Association. And it should be the team's and owner's responsibility to follow the league rules. So, it's certainly understandable why the Clippers and their leadership have to pay the price more than Leonard.

The Clippers went above and beyond over the last seven years to keep Kawhi Leonard happy. They thought this would bring them the relevance and the success they have long chased. Instead, they are now in a worse spot than they have ever been.

Leonard, on the other hand, will get his money and continue to play for a championship on a team that he wanted to get traded to. That has to be the most frustrating part of it all for Clippers fans.

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