It took a miraculous, last-second shot in Game 7 for the Sixers to get knocked out of the playoffs last season — and that player that hit that shot might out of the way next season.
According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, it appears the Los Angeles Lakers are now very high on Kawhi Leonard's list of teams in free agency, so much so that he might end up joining LeBron James and Anthony Davis over going back to the Toronto Raptors.
The next week is going to absolutely fascinating on the Kawhi front alone. The Clippers have to beat out the newly minted champions and the lords of Los Angeles. The Lakers, meanwhile, firmly believe they've got Toronto (and anyone else) beat in the Kawhi Sweepstakes. #madness
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 29, 2019Leonard signing with the Lakers might be the best case scenario for the Sixers (outside of him signing in Philadelphia).
If Leonard does indeed join the Lakers, that means the Eastern Conference would be as wide open as it has been in years. LeBron James, who owned the East for years, would be out West. Leonard, who owned it last season, would be with him. Only standing in the Sixers way would be the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that showed last season they are more than capable of beating, and would have more top-end talent than.
Of course, the Sixers still have some work of their own to do. Free agents Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris are still set to become free agents on Sunday, with teams like the Houston Rockets and the Brooklyn Nets trying to land them. If the Sixers don't bring back at least one, it might not matter where Leonard signs.
If the Sixers take care of their own free agents, however, and Leonard heads to the Lakers, the Sixers very well could enter next season as the favorites in the Eastern Conference.
You can follow Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
