Surprise Clippers Trade May Be Next If Celtics Land Giannis Antetokounmpo

The LA Clippers may find themselves at the center of trade talks once Giannis finds a new home.

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The NBA is fully in offseason mode. With the 2026 NBA Draft only 36 hours away, the trade buzz is louder than ever. The biggest domino to fall is still Giannis Antetokounmpo. All signs are pointing towards the Greek superstar heading to the Boston Celtics or the Miami Heat before the draft. Depending on how the final stages of those negotiations go, the Los Angeles Clippers may find themselves at the center of trade talks.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst hinted at this possibility in his appearance on Get Up on Monday. He said that he is keeping an eye out for the Clippers over the next few days, especially once Antetokounmpo is traded.

Clippers May Be Signaling a Big Trade With Their Recent Draft Visits

What Windhorst is basing this on is certainly fascinating. He reported that the Clippers have been visiting prospects expected to go in late lottery, between picks 10 and 15, over the last few days, before adding, "They have the fifth pick. Why are they doing that? They could be trading down, yes, but this draft is great; the fifth pick is valuable. Why are they looking? We got the Heat sitting there at 13, we got the Warriors sitting there at 11."

What the NBA insider is implying is that if Miami can't get Antetokounmpo, they would pivot to Kawhi Leonard.

This confirms the reporting we had all offseason. The Heat's top priority has been Giannis all along, but Leonard was assumed to be their Plan B if they lost the Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.

This makes plenty of sense. The Heat feel a ton of pressure to improve next season. They have been stuck in Play-In purgatory, and the fanbase expects them to make a big splash. Especially after the trade package for Giannis has been so widely publicized, it will be difficult to run it back with those same players. Instead of bringing that group back, using a similar package to acquire Leonard may be the preferred route.

This is why the Clippers may be evaluating the late-lottery prospects. They would almost certainly want Miami's No. 13 pick in the draft, in addition to a package consisting of their young players like Kel'el Ware, Jaime Jaquez, Nikola Jovic, and Kasparas Jakucionis.

The Clippers already have a fascinating decision to make with the No. 5 pick in the draft. If there is a Leonard trade between now and then, things could get even crazier in LA. Nothing should be ruled out in the Clippers' offseason, making them one of the top teams to watch this week.