Gallinari Holds Leonard Responsible for Career Changes

Danilo Gallinari has sent a $50 million bill to Kawhi Leonard, claiming that his career took a significant turn due to Leonard’s actions.

The intended recipient of this hefty amount? A charitable cause.

However, the reasoning behind this claim isn’t particularly straightforward.

During a conversation on the “A Cresta Alta” podcast, Gallinari expressed that Leonard was to blame for the end of his time with the Clippers in 2019. This occurred when Los Angeles traded Gallinari to secure Paul George from the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“He changed the trajectory of my career,” Gallinari stated, insisting that Leonard should cover the full $50 million and not just the $700,000 penalty Leonard faced for violating salary-cap regulations.

This $700,000 fine was part of a much larger consequence, as the Clippers were hit with a record $30 million penalty, lost five first-round draft picks, and their owner, Steve Ballmer, received a one-year suspension.

Gallinari linking these sanctions to his own departure seems rather unfounded. The salary-cap violations stemmed partly from a $28 million endorsement deal with Aspiration, which, interestingly, Leonard had not fulfilled in terms of promotional duties. This agreement was made years after Gallinari’s trade, adding more confusion to his argument.

While this arrangement reflects poorly on Leonard and the Clippers, it’s a stretch to say it cost Gallinari his position on the roster. To suggest that a later salary-cap issue should compensate for an earlier trade involves merging two separate controversies rather than establishing a direct connection.

It appears this is Gallinari’s way of seeking justice from a player he thinks had enough influence to change his career course. Leonard’s push for another star led the Clippers to acquire George through a massive trade that also included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, several first-round picks, and two swaps.

There’s an understandable element to Gallinari’s frustration. Players often discover they’ve been traded through the business decisions of executives. If another player instigated that process, it might hit differently.

Yet, one must question the validity of attributing his career trajectory solely to that trade. During his sole season with the Thunder, Gallinari averaged 18.7 points and 5.2 rebounds, shot 40.6 percent from beyond the arc, and contributed to Oklahoma City’s playoff run. Following that season, he secured a three-year, $61.4 million contract with Atlanta.

This hardly seems like a case of financial disaster.

At 31 during his season with Oklahoma City, his subsequent decline coincided with the typical downturn most players experience at that age, and it only happened after he secured a substantial payday.

While Leonard isn’t blameless in the Clippers’ scandal, the truth of modern sports suggests that this isn’t another offense for him to shoulder.