Kawhi Leonard scandal might lead to another big trade

Finally, and contrary to earlier reports, the NBA laid the hammer on the Los Angeles Clippers.

The investigation revealed that, just as sports journalist Pablo Torre had reported and unveiled months ago, team owner Steve Ballmer knowingly circumvented the salary cap to pay Kawhi Leonard for no-show endorsement deals.

As a result, the NBA stripped the Clippers of five first-round picks, plus a series of sanctions, fines and suspensions. Leonard himself got off easily, and he'll now take his talents back up north to the Toronto Raptors. 

However, he's leaving his former team in a tough spot, which is why Heavy's Sean Deveney now thinks the Clippers might be forced to shop Darius Garland.

Darius Garland might be the next big name on the trade block

"The player to watch, of course, is point guard Darius Garland, who is 26 years old with two years and $87 million left on his contract. He’d certainly return an unprotected first-round pick, and probably two, with some protections, plus a young player," Deveney wrote. 

From a basketball standpoint, Garland is more than worth the return. That said, the laws of supply and demand will hurt the Clippers here. Beggars can't be choosers, and with no first-round picks for half a decade, the Clippers have no leverage whatsoever here.

As such, someone can take a flier on the injury-prone but talented point guard at a discount. Trading for Paul George to get Leonard to sign will eventually go down as one of the worst moves in professional sports history, considering that it also cost them Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and a total of 10 first-round picks after the investigation. Maybe Garland can help them get some of that back.