Now that the Los Angeles Clippers are no longer in contention for the 2021 NBA championship after getting knocked out of the playoffs by Chris Paul and the Phoenix Suns, the focus for the team shifts to a lot of things. Perhaps none bigger than the future of Kawhi Leonard. The Klaw could become a free agent in the offseason, and one of the teams rumored to have a target on his back is the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavs know all about Kawhi, having played against him in back-to-back playoffs, and he's certainly someone any team would die to have.

According to Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, the Mavs have emerged as a team with a serious potential to land Kawhi Leonard.

“The Mavericks and Heat plan to make a hard push to acquire Leonard, league sources say. The Knicks will also pursue any superstar that becomes available, and a long list of other suitors would at least make an attempt if he hits the market. Who wouldn’t want a 30-year-old two-time Finals MVP still performing at an All-NBA level?”

Any team looking to acquire Leonard should also hope that the 30-year-old forward would not pick up his player option for the 2021-22 NBA season that's worth $36.016 million. The Mavs can also hammer out a sign-and-trade deal by Leonard with the Clippers.

The Mavs have the space to absorb a superstar in the offseason. Tim Hardaway Jr., JJ Redick, Nico Melli, and Boban Marjanovic are set to be off Dallas books, which would mean an additional cap space of around $40 million. Dallas could also work out a trade in the future that would send Kristaps Porzingis away in hopes of opening more financial legroom for Luka Doncic, whose rookie deal expires in 2023.

It's going to be an interesting offseason for Dallas, especially with Kawhi Leonard's name getting brought up.