Should the Spurs just suspend Kawhi next year?

[baseline bum]

We know this is headed to a Paul George situation since Leonard wants out and only has one year on his contract, giving him an effective veto power over any trade. So that's going to severely limit his value on the trade market if his uncle wants him in LA the same way George wanted. I don't see the point in just giving him away for scraps another team doesn't want like Indiana did with the Thunder. I say sit him and suspend him and force him to either broaden his range of teams he'll extend with or force the team his uncle wants him on to go and make moves to land the Spurs worthwhile assets for rebuilding with if they want a Leonard who hasn't been inactive for two years. He can spend all of next season rehabbing in New York again if he sabotages the trade value the Spurs could get for him.

[duncan2k5]

Who says he wants out? Did a new article come out or something? Did he speak to the media? Or lemme guess... More assumptions?

[baseline bum]

Who says he wants out? Did a new article come out or something? Did he speak to the media? Or lemme guess... More assumptions?

Him being AWOL from the team speaks louder than any quote.

[LaMarcus Bryant]

We should do anything to sabotage his value further imo fwiw

[duncan2k5]

Him being AWOL from the team speaks louder than any quote.

The guy is with team doctors... He isn't in Hawaii sipping coladas

[baseline bum]

We should do anything to sabotage his value further imo fwiw

It's not really about that IMO. It's about forcing his uncles' desired trade partner into finding worthwhile assets for the Spurs if they want their guy's skills to not atrophy with another year away from a team.

[MoSpur02]

They need to end the relationship. The players are upset with him and how he's handled this. I have been told a couple of things, which is why back at the trade deadline the Spurs got the approval to trade him.

I haven't seen the relationship improve since so I'm sure the Spurs trade him.

[dabom]

The guy is with team doctors... He isn't in Hawaii sipping coladas

:lol

[baseline bum]

They need to end the relationship. The players are upset with him and how he's handled this. I have been told a couple of things, which is why back at the trade deadline the Spurs got the approval to trade him.

I haven't seen the relationship improve since so I'm sure the Spurs trade him.

They need to not get completely hosed with nothing of value to build around. The Spurs can't get equal value so I'm not saying they need to hold out for that, but an offer of Ingram + Kuzma sounds like shit, especially when the Lakers probably won't be in the lottery after trading for Leonard. What the Clippers can offer is even worse.

[MoSpur02]

I have been told that Boston is seriously interested. From what I understood the Spurs will consider Boston's proposed deal.

[duncan2k5]

I have been told that Boston is seriously interested. From what I understood the Spurs will consider Boston's proposed deal.

First part is true... Not the second... From what I understand, spurs will offer Kawhi a contract

[baseline bum]

I have been told that Boston is seriously interested. From what I understood the Spurs will consider Boston's proposed deal.

If Leonard says he isn't signing in Boston then Ainge's offer will dry up just like with PG13.

[benefactor]

The guy is with team doctors... He isn't in Hawaii sipping coladas
So his injury is so bad he can't sit for a few hours with his teammates during the playoffs?

[Bill_Brasky]

Kawhi will be the MVP next year.

[MoSpur02]

First part is true... Not the second... From what I understand, spurs will offer Kawhi a contract

Why are you in such denial bro? Kawhi is a top 5 player when healthy and it sucks that this season has turned out the way it has, but the Spurs brass will strongly consider trading him. They will also consider offering a contract to him and see how that goes, but there is no denying the Spurs are really upset with Kawhi and if a team offers them something that they think will help the team then they might just trade him.

[SAGirl]

Who says he wants out? Did a new article come out or something? Did he speak to the media? Or lemme guess... More assumptions?
Assumptions obviously. Speculation too.

As for me, until there are real rumors about him being involved in trades like there were last summer with Danny and LMA, I don't believe he wants out. We shall see what happens.

Him being injured an entire season and not playing bc of it though, makes me very uncertain about his overall career future anyways. I don't think the Spurs offer him a supermax considering how this season went and how he's still not ready to go. And that may eventually sour the relationship beyond repair. We shall see what happens.

[phxspurfan]

They need to not get completely hosed with nothing of value to build around. The Spurs can't get equal value so I'm not saying they need to hold out for that, but an offer of Ingram + Kuzma sounds like shit, especially when the Lakers probably won't be in the lottery after trading for Leonard. What the Clippers can offer is even worse.

Lol...were not getting Ingram or kuzma my dude

[hater]

The poor bastard cannot even wipe how own ass much less risk being suspended

[BackHome]

Lol Kawhi is so gone I don’t even think the door will hit his ass on the way out as fast as he is going.

[loveforthegame]

If the relationship is beyond repair the Spurs are not going to hold on to him and have another year of drama. They’ll get the best deal they can and move on.

[Uriel]

Kawhi is going to sign the supermax this offseason and win MVP the next. Watch.

[jbspurs]

Suspend? How's that going to help next Spurs next season? The following year he will become UFA, then Spurs will lose him for nothing. I say trade him, get quality players in return.

[phxspurfan]

Kawhi is going to sign the supermax this offseason and win MVP the next. Watch.

Lol I hope you're joking. The best players in the NBA are clearly LeBron, Durant, Harden, Westbrook, AD, Giannis in that order. They will dominate MVP voting the next few years

Edit: forgot Curry

[baseline bum]

Suspend? How's that going to help next Spurs next season? The following year he will become UFA, then Spurs will lose him for nothing. I say trade him, get quality players in return.

If he vetoes trades to anywhere but LA they're not going to get quality players in return. That's my whole point of suspending him, to make him choose between another wasted season, signing an extension elsewhere with a team that might make a better offer, or forcing his desired destination to make moves to acquire assets useful to the Spurs if they don't want him sitting on his ass for another year. That's how it helps the Spurs, it lets them gain back a little leverage. And I'd rather get nothing in return than get crap. Suspending him keeps him away from the team so he's not as huge a distraction.

[boutons_deux]

Kawhi is going to sign the supermax this offseason and win MVP the next. Watch.

his leg has bothered him for years. I bet that chronic problem will continue. The NY docs can't work magic on a chronically injured leg. It will be back. a tragedy.

[phxspurfan]

If he vetoes trades to anywhere but LA they're not going to get quality players in return. That's my whole point of suspending him, to make him choose between another wasted season, signing an extension elsewhere with a team that might make a better offer, or forcing his desired destination to make moves to acquire assets useful to the Spurs if they don't want him sitting on his ass for another year. That's how it helps the Spurs, it lets them gain back a little leverage. And I'd rather get nothing in return than get crap. Suspending him keeps him away from the team so he's not a huge distraction.

We won't get crap. We will get randle if it's the Lakers and Lou will if it's the clips

[SpursforSix]

So his injury is so bad he can't sit for a few hours with his teammates during the playoffs?

His brain is so fucked up that he won't do that.

And now it's too late. If he showed up on the bench, it'd be awkward as hell and probably get more coverage than the actual game.

[baseline bum]

We won't get crap. We will get randle if it's the Lakers and Lou will if it's the clips

That's total crap.

[boutons_deux]

what kind of health caveat on the player's insurance for the team receiving KL?

He's really damaged goods, has been for years, with that bum leg.

[SAGirl]

his leg has bothered him for years. I bet that chronic problem will continue. The NY docs can't work magic on a chronically injured leg. It will be back. a tragedy.
I tend to think this is true unfortunately.

All this blame to the Spurs doctors, but he has been seen and cared for by his personal medical group since January and he's not better, not well enough to play. It is a tragedy.

[cd98]

Spurs need Kawhi to sign the max and have a great year next year. If Kawhi ultimately wants out, that is the only way to get fair value.

[phxspurfan]

I tend to think this is true unfortunately.

All this blame to the Spurs doctors, but he has been seen and cared for by his personal medical group since January and he's not better, not well enough to play. It is a tragedy.

Exactly. People have recovered from Ebola faster than this dude from his thigh bruise

[hater]

The poor bastard will not even fly back to SA for his exit interview tbqh

He will probably do his exit interview via skype

“Kawhi do you have any comments suggestion on your season?”

“No”

“Ok thanks.”

:lmao

[lmbebo]

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2505250/

[rasuo214]

We know this is headed to a Paul George situation since Leonard wants out and only has one year on his contract, giving him an effective veto power over any trade. So that's going to severely limit his value on the trade market if his uncle wants him in LA the same way George wanted. I don't see the point in just giving him away for scraps another team doesn't want like Indiana did with the Thunder. I say sit him and suspend him and force him to either broaden his range of teams he'll extend with or force the team his uncle wants him on to go and make moves to land the Spurs worthwhile assets for rebuilding with if they want a Leonard who hasn't been inactive for two years. He can spend all of next season rehabbing in New York again if he sabotages the trade value the Spurs could get for him.

The scraps Indiana ended up getting has paid off for them, Oladipo had a better season than Paul George. Obviously the Spurs should still try to leverage the best deal they can get within reason (suspending him to get a better offer is not reasonable). This of course is assuming things can't be smoothed over, like it did with LMA.

And we're not even factoring in the ramifications that suspending him would have on the franchise, the Spurs already have a tough enough time attracting players via FA.

[tholdren]

Suspend

[Ice009]

I have been told that Boston is seriously interested. From what I understood the Spurs will consider Boston's proposed deal.

Does it appear certain that the Spurs want to trade him, or do you think the relationship can be mended?

[baseline bum]

The scraps Indiana ended up getting has paid off for them, Oladipo had a better season than Paul George. Obviously the Spurs should still try to leverage the best deal they can get within reason (suspending him to get a better offer is not reasonable). This of course is assuming things can't be smoothed over, like it did with LMA.

And we're not even factoring in the ramifications that suspending him would have on the franchise, the Spurs already have a tough enough time attracting players via FA.

Indiana got incredibly lucky. Oladipo wasn't a very good player at the time and OKC loved getting out of that contract.

Why is suspending him unreasonable though if the best offer they get is Julius Randle on a near max contract?

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

I tend to think this is true unfortunately.

All this blame to the Spurs doctors, but he has been seen and cared for by his personal medical group since January and he's not better, not well enough to play. It is a tragedy.

This actually could work to the Spurs benefit. If Kawhi sees that his own hired guns can't help him perhaps he'll realize the Spurs had his best interest at heart the whole time. Then it becomes a pain management situation. Kawhi could still be a good player for a few years if he can play through pain. David did it for more than half of his career and so did Tim. Neither guy played at the 100% level, yet both were still really effective. If Kawhi is truly not about the money, as some have stated, then he'd see after next season he's not worth a max deal with his injury and do the Tim Duncan thing, taking less to surround himself with better talent.






A guy can dream...can't he?

[SAGirl]

The poor bastard will not even fly back to SA for his exit interview tbqh

He will probably do his exit interview via skype

“Kawhi do you have any comments suggestion on your season?”

“No”

“Ok thanks.”

:lmao
Pop is going to have to do his sit down with Kiwi in NYC

[SAGirl]

This actually could work to the Spurs benefit. If Kawhi sees that his own hired guns can't help him perhaps he'll realize the Spurs had his best interest at heart the whole time. Then it becomes a pain management situation. Kawhi could still be a good player for a few years if he can play through pain. David did it for more than half of his career and so did Tim. Neither guy played at the 100% level, yet both were still really effective. If Kawhi is truly not about the money, as some have stated, then he'd see after next season he's not worth a max deal with his injury and do the Tim Duncan thing, taking less to surround himself with better talent.






A guy can dream...can't he?
yup we can dream. It's better than cliff diving.

But the way I understand his condition though, the pain is no joke and leaves you looking like he did going up those stairs in that plane back in November. It affects daily activities and if he plays through it, it will take him out eventually. Frankly, he's a risky player to supermax with this injury history. He also appears to not be made from the stuff that David and Timmy were made of in terms of playing through discomfort. And he's a wing... to a degree him playing at an MVP level is tied to his explosiveness and his defense requires his lateral quickness. Even a hobbled Kiwi is the best wing player in the team, but a hobbled Kiwi is not a supermax player, specially with injury management on the horizon being required. Tough situation for the Spurs bc I think it is precisely the injury itself and disagreements over the supermax which have created this rift.

I hope he gets healthy at this point and we will see what happens.

[dbreiden83080]

I don’t believe the Spurs are going to be bullied into some shitty deal this summer. They are too smart of an organization. I think odds are they will hang onto him and make him play next year. I would.. Why give him up for scraps?

[dbreiden83080]

The poor bastard will not even fly back to SA for his exit interview tbqh

He will probably do his exit interview via skype

“Kawhi do you have any comments suggestion on your season?”

.

“No”

“Ok thanks.”

:lmao

He can be as quiet as he wants. He can be as quietly mad as he wants. The bottom line he does not have any leverage with the Spurs about next season. He needs to play ball. This man is going to be a free agent after next year, if he wants to get paid he has to play ball. There are consequences for blowing off an entire season for no good reason

[DieHardSpursFan1537]

Him being AWOL from the team speaks louder than any quote.

[dbreiden83080]

Him being AWOL from the team speaks louder than any quote.

Which basically shows just how gutless he is.. They had this team meeting where they basically told him to man up. His response was to stick his tail straight into his ass and run away. I don’t think anybody on the team has even seen him since that day.

[E20]

Who says he wants out? Did a new article come out or something? Did he speak to the media? Or lemme guess... More assumptions?

Hey dude why don't you shut the fuck up and take Kawhis dick out of your mouth. We get it you're defending him cuz you like getting your wife cucked by him while you watch in a corner and cry just please keep your Kawhi gay man love to yourself tho

[JFK]

If he vetoes trades to anywhere but LA they're not going to get quality players in return. That's my whole point of suspending him, to make him choose between another wasted season, signing an extension elsewhere with a team that might make a better offer, or forcing his desired destination to make moves to acquire assets useful to the Spurs if they don't want him sitting on his ass for another year. That's how it helps the Spurs, it lets them gain back a little leverage. And I'd rather get nothing in return than get crap. Suspending him keeps him away from the team so he's not as huge a distraction.



I agree with this. First off, the Spurs and I'm sure Pop won't want to be doing this next year again.

I think out of pure principle the Spurs won't let it get to that and might do just this. I would not blame them any if they did suspend his ass and make him sit all year. In fact, I hope they do that just so he doesn't get his way and screw them over, which he already has.

This is the situation you hear about "burning the village down to save it".

[loveforthegame]

I’m sure they could suspend him but the whole season? Wouldn’t the players union/league step in?

[lmbebo]

This actually could work to the Spurs benefit. If Kawhi sees that his own hired guns can't help him perhaps he'll realize the Spurs had his best interest at heart the whole time. Then it becomes a pain management situation. Kawhi could still be a good player for a few years if he can play through pain. David did it for more than half of his career and so did Tim. Neither guy played at the 100% level, yet both were still really effective. If Kawhi is truly not about the money, as some have stated, then he'd see after next season he's not worth a max deal with his injury and do the Tim Duncan thing, taking less to surround himself with better talent.






A guy can dream...can't he?

Kwahi is completely about the money. He may not be a big spender, but he wants his money.

[spurs1990]

If he vetoes trades to anywhere but LA they're not going to get quality players in return. That's my whole point of suspending him, to make him choose between another wasted season, signing an extension elsewhere with a team that might make a better offer, or forcing his desired destination to make moves to acquire assets useful to the Spurs if they don't want him sitting on his ass for another year. That's how it helps the Spurs, it lets them gain back a little leverage. And I'd rather get nothing in return than get crap. Suspending him keeps him away from the team so he's not as huge a distraction.

This is very interesting. Assuming the FO is willing or even capable of playing hardball on this level, the ultimate result will be Leonard being probably the first player to ever be re-soundly jeered by San Antonio fans whenever his new team visits.

And San Antonio has to have some of the nicest low key fans there is. Incredible that Leonard of all people will be the guy who gets the loudest negative reaction.

[MoSpur02]

Does it appear certain that the Spurs want to trade him, or do you think the relationship can be mended?

Want to trade him? I don't think they want to, but the relationship between Pop/players and Kawhi isn't as good as they would like so trading him is something they are really going to consider. They will sit down and talk with Kawhi once the season is over and see what he wants and go from there.

[lmbebo]

I’m sure they could suspend him but the whole season? Wouldn’t the players union/league step in?


They could. But it wouldn't be a straight forward case. If he's refusing to play. Tendinopathy isn't exactly a career ending diagnosis ... I don't think anyone has ever sat out this long because of it.

[baseline bum]

I’m sure they could suspend him but the whole season? Wouldn’t the players union/league step in?

They could cut him after the deadline for free agents to sign and be playoff eligible.

[Ed Helicopter Jones]

You never get equal value back for a disgruntled player.

The whole situation just sucks.

[Rob123]

Fuck this dudes swollen pussy.

I don't want anything back for him. I want him sitting out another year in his prime. You only get so many prime years and to have 2 taken away I think is punishment enough for his dumb antics. Not to mention it's tough to come back to the NBA as a great player after 2 years away from competition. The guys career will be absolutely fucked.

[Spurs9]

He will be traded, I don't think his value has really been effected that much tbh. He hasn't had surgery, there are plenty of teams who will line up for him despite what has gone on. The Spurs aren't going to drag this out another year. Keep in mind Lebron is a FA this offseason, there are going to be tons of teams thinking of how they can have a Kawhi/Lebron combo, those teams aren't going to dwell that much about how Kawhi wasn't on the bench during the playoffs. A team who could trade for Kawhi has a even better chance of getting Lebron so they will go all in on that. If a team like LA can trade any combo of picks and players to get Kawhi to then sign Lebron they will.

[Clipper Nation]

He will be traded, I don't think his value has really been effected that much tbh. He hasn't had surgery, there are plenty of teams who will line up for him despite what has gone on. The Spurs aren't going to drag this out another year. Keep in mind Lebron is a FA this offseason, there are going to be tons of teams thinking of how they can have a Kawhi/Lebron combo, those teams aren't going to dwell that much about how Kawhi wasn't on the bench during the playoffs. A team who could trade for Kawhi has a even better chance of getting Lebron so they will go all in on that. If a team like LA can trade any combo of picks and players to get Kawhi to then sign Lebron they will.
Kawhi has sat out a whole year with an injury, he has Poop trashing him to the media after every game, teammates (Porker and even Manu to an extent) throwing him under the bus, and even the media is piling on now. I highly doubt his value hasn't been affected. Trading for him is a huge risk right now, unlike the usual trades for disgruntled stars.

[objective]

IF he doesn't accept an extension and IF they can't get back something like the #1 pick ...

Then yes. Hardball it is. He brought this on.

But I suspect it won't be a suspension. They'll have to tell him to stay away.

Because as soon as the season starts and they threaten to suspend him for conduct detrimental his leg will feel magically better.

But they shouldn't be pushed around by him. Scorched Earth him, ban him from the facilities.

Yes, he'll walk for nothing. And like Jordan missing time for baseball, he'll probably still be great for his next team.

But I say kill his earning power on endorsement deals for next year. Get the 'sources said' out there that he might never play again. That he'll be Brandon Roy. He tanked the Spurs, time to tank him. It's petty, but it's justice. He'll go a year without those big endorsements he wants, and maybe longer as he'll need to prove himself. His career earning potential combined with the lack of supermax will fall by millions.

With Green likely gone, it's not like the locker room will be divided. It'll be LMA's team, none of them will be on his side after what he's pulled this season.

[SpursforSix]

You never get equal value back for a disgruntled player.

The whole situation just sucks.

https://yt3.ggpht.com/-0ikZtbuDeSc/AAAAAAAAAAI/AAAAAAAAAAA/AdGzyETmbLU/s48-c-k-no-mo-rj-c0xffffff/photo.jpg I'm not disgruntled. I'm just not happy with the team and situation.

[jbspurs]

If he vetoes trades to anywhere but LA they're not going to get quality players in return. That's my whole point of suspending him, to make him choose between another wasted season, signing an extension elsewhere with a team that might make a better offer, or forcing his desired destination to make moves to acquire assets useful to the Spurs if they don't want him sitting on his ass for another year. That's how it helps the Spurs, it lets them gain back a little leverage. And I'd rather get nothing in return than get crap. Suspending him keeps him away from the team so he's not as huge a distraction.

Does he have a no trade clause? If I am not mistaken, only players who have No trade clause can veto any trade that they don't want.

[K...]

Unless the Spurs aren't giving the big Max, or k won't take it, there will be no trade. Anything other speculation is emo

[Pauleta14]

Who says he wants out? Did a new article come out or something? Did he speak to the media? Or lemme guess... More assumptions?

[rasuo214]

Indiana got incredibly lucky. Oladipo wasn't a very good player at the time and OKC loved getting out of that contract.

Why is suspending him unreasonable though if the best offer they get is Julius Randle on a near max contract?

Lucky or not it still worked out for them. What does wasting Kawhi's final year do for the Spurs? Nothing positive. 1% chance the trade will turn out great >>> Getting nothing in return.

And you're seriously questioning why it's unreasonable to suspend a player just because the team isn't getting the trade offers they want? They don't have to take a Randle but they also don't have to suspend Kawhi. That just puts the organization in a bad light and makes them look petty.

[baseline bum]

Lucky or not it still worked out for them. What does wasting Kawhi's final year do for the Spurs? Nothing positive. 1% chance the trade will turn out great >>> Getting nothing in return.

And you're seriously questioning why it's unreasonable to suspend a player just because the team isn't getting the trade offers they want? They don't have to take a Randle but they also don't have to suspend Kawhi. That just puts the organization in a bad light and makes them look petty.

It's not petty. It's a sign the team won't be bullied into taking crap offers. And getting nothing is much better than getting $15 to $20 million worth of crap. We already have that with Gasol.

[barbacoataco]

Some interesting takes but at the end of the day we still don't know the big question. Is he not playing because he can't, or won't? Everything else is speculation. Very strange. The media does seem to mostly think there is some kind of bad blood beyond the injury, mainly because he isn't sitting with the team.

Also, it's hard to believe that he can't play even limited minutes, when he's been cleared by team doctors for weeks now. For an injury that was non-surgical. Possibly unprecedented that I know of.

[Mikeanaro]

Cant remember suspension for acting like monsieur Ricky Bobby, has ever happened?

[Mikeanaro]

Also, it's hard to believe that he can't play even limited minutes, when he's been cleared by team doctors for weeks now. For an injury that was non-surgical. Possibly unprecedented that I know of.
966794354793709568

[rasuo214]

It's not petty. It's a sign the team won't be bullied into taking crap offers. And getting nothing is much better than getting $15 to $20 million worth of crap. We already have that with Gasol.

No one is bullying them into taking a crap offer and again how is suspending Kawhi better than having him play?

[baseline bum]

No one is bullying them into taking a crap offer and again how is suspending Kawhi better than having him play?

If they can salvage the relationship at the last minute like the Lakers did with Kobe in 07 that obviously changes everything completely.

[tholdren]

Suspend

[Hoops Czar]

Should the Spurs suspend Kawhi for being injured? Spurstalk :lol

[tholdren]

Should the Spurs suspend Kawhi for being injured? Spurstalk :lol

Yes

[objective]

Injured?

Kawhi leads the team in advanced stats like PER. He won't qualify, but he's top 5 in steals in the NBA. If he played 30 minutes, he'd lead the league.

His last three games were damn good. He might not have been 100%, but he wasn't unable to play.

There's hurt and injured, and he's hurt.