Kawhi Leonard Talks Clippers Contract Option, Says He's 'Focused on This Season'

Will he stay or will he go? 

For Los Angeles Clippers fans, that's the question when it comes to Kawhi Leonard, who can choose to become a free agent after the 2020-21 season. On Monday, Leonard didn't offer much insight into his thinking, saying he was focused on the upcoming campaign:

Leonard's running mate, Paul George, signed a four-year, $190 million extension with the Clippers this summer, committing the next five seasons to the Clippers. That perhaps left some Clippers fans wondering why Leonard didn't do the same. 

"He's one of the guys that I talked to and kind of wanted to inform, 'Hey, this is a decision I wanted to make. I want to be here long term,'" George told reporters after signing his extension. "It's not putting a gun to Kawhi and telling him he's gotta do this or do that. Hopefully it's a mutual bond, and we both enjoy playing with one another."

But Paul and George were in different situations. George was eligible to sign an extension, since he was on the third year of the contract he originally signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Leonard, on just the second year of his deal with the Clippers, wouldn't be extension eligible unless he picked up his 2021-22 player option. 

Here's why that won't happen: While George has 10 service years in the NBA, meaning he was eligible to sign an extension for up to 35 percent of the cap, Leonard won't hit 10 service years until after this season. Thus, he'll likely decline his $36 million player option whether he intends to return to the Clippers or not. 

As ESPN's Kevin Pelton noted, Leonard could sign a deal that would be worth up to $39.3 million next season based on that 35 percent of the cap benchmark. So it wouldn't make much financial sense for Leonard to opt into his 2021-22 player option from a financial standpoint. 

So Clippers fans are going to have to be patient, and hope that Leonard still believes the team gives him the best chance to win a title in the long term after the 2020-21 season.