It's not a secret at this point that the Los Angeles Lakers openly wanted Kawhi Leonard. The ex-San Antonio Spurs star was one of the hottest names on the market, aside from LeBron James, of course. It's no surprise, then, that former Lakers GM Magic Johnson used the appeal of Kawhi Leonard in LA to lure LeBron, in a recent interview.
“I said (to LeBron James), ‘These are the moves that I'm going to make after I sign you. I'm gonna go after…' At that time, I thought it was going to be Kawhi because he was the next free agent the next year,” Magic Johnson said. “Nobody knew that Anthony Davis was gonna be available for trade, so I said, ‘I'mma get you, then I'mma get Kawhi.'”
Kawhi Leonard did end up going to Los Angeles… by joining Paul George in the Clippers. The Lakers did win a championship in 2020 with Anthony Davis and LeBron James. Since then, though, LA has struggled to find any sort of consistent form, missing the playoffs entirely last season.
As for Magic Johnson, he was removed from his post as the general manager of the Lakers a few years after 2018. His lackluster signings were one of the many reasons why LA floundered, as well as his many public attempts at tampering. He was replaced by Rob Pelinka, who then built the championship team in 2020.
The ultimate dream scenario would be if the Lakers and the Clippers somehow met in the playoffs. That way, we'll see who will be vindicated in their decision.
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