NBA Rumors: Los Angeles Lakers denied Kawhi Leonard's uncle's requests for illegal perks during free agency
What's the rumor?
Kawhi Leonard might now be with the Los Angeles Clippers, but the stories of this summer's free agency continue to emerge.
As reported by Sam Amick of The Athletic, Kawhi's uncle Dennis Robertson asked for some illegal benefits during the free agency period from the Lakers. These benefits included:
- A partial ownership share
- A private plane access
- A house
- A guaranteed amount of endorsement money
The heart of the matter
The report also says the benefits requested were against the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) of the NBA and were consequently rejected by Lakers' governor Jeanie Buss. It further adds this same set of demands were kept by the Kawhi camp while meeting with the Toronto Raptors.
In response to the reports, the league's commissioner Adam Silver told the Athletic they have already begun investigating - having checked activities from the summer's events. He also added there is no proof of such demands being put up in-front of the Lakers or Raptors, saying:
"We did tell our teams that we are looking into and continue to look into activities from this summer. We have and continue to look at it, but first and foremost we want to change the way business is done going forward."
In case you didn't know...
Whether the Clippers were also asked the same bounty or not, remains a mystery. But combining with Paul George among home comforts in LA sounded like the most important perk from Kawhi's perspective this past summer.
Nonetheless, one thing that's certain is the Lakers are unhappy with the way things were handled by his camp during negotiations. As he stalled and didn't come to an immediate decision, they missed out on a lot of free agents while waiting patiently for him to commit.
What's next?
Kawhi is averaging 25.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.8 steals per game this season. The Clippers are sitting fourth place in the Western Conference with a 22-10 record, while the Lakers sit top of the table - led by LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
The Clippers-Lakers rivalry will be the apogee of the season thus far and the highlight of the league's televised Christmas Day matches.