There's plenty of blame to go around for the Los Angeles Clippers ' horrendous 5-16 start, which has them languishing at the bottom of the Western Conference despite a loaded roster bannered by All-Stars James Harden and Kawhi Leonard .
However, if you ask former NBA champion and now well-respected pundit Kendrick Perkins , most of the blame must be shouldered by Kawhi. He has not only set the Clippers franchise back by being unavailable most of the time (he has played in only 277 games in his six-year tenure with the Clippers), but has painted them into a corner with his bloated salary (he has earned a whopping $428,908,252 in wages in L.A.).
The Klaw is undoubtedly one of the most prolific two-way players the league has ever seen. A two-time NBA champion, NBA Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year winner, his blend of tenacious defense, rebounding and shotmaking is second to none in the NBA. However, Kendrick feels that the Clippers have cut an arm and a leg off to cater to Kawhi's every need.
" Kawhi Leonard is one of the worst free agent signings in NBA history. One of the worst free agent signings in NBA history. He has set the Clippers back 10 to 15 years. I don't know where they go from here," Perk declared on the "Road Trippin'" podcast.
"Before he got to the Clippers, he demanded that they bring in another star/superstar, meaning Paul George. The Clippers were begging and pleading for him to say, 'Hey, bro, we got to keep SGA.' He didn't want SGA. What did the Clippers do? They shipped SGA to OKC for Paul George with five first-round picks. Five first-round picks at the time," the big man with the big voice added.
To label that move as a misstep has to be the understatement of the decade. Although PG had his moments with the Clippers, he also missed a significant number of games due to injuries, and the team's farthest advancement with him on the roster was to the 2021 Western Conference Finals.
Meanwhile, SGA has become one of the most dominant players the NBA has seen in the last half-decade. He delivered the Larry O'Brien trophy to OKC last season, winning the MVP and NBA Finals MVP trophies in the process. Additionally, he has averaged more than 30 points a game in the previous three seasons, shooting well over 50 percent.
Related: Nick Young MOCKS Kawhi Leonard for demanding better talent on the Clippers
The Clippers are now stuck between a rock and a hard place. They rank in the bottom 10 in both offensive and defensive rating. They will not even have the player they acquired to replace the sharpshooting Norman Powell — Bradley Beal . Perk was relentless in asserting that all this is on Kawhi's plate.
"So when you think about where the Clippers are today, you think about Kawhi Leonard and what he had — his comments he said last week basically saying he need better players around him," he stated.
"Do you think Kawhi Leonard went out and fought to keep Paul George? Hell no. Do you think he went out and said, 'Hey man, y'all don't trade Norman Powell. The man averaged 24 for us last season, man, y'all need to pay the man.' Hell no. Because Kawhi Leonard only gives a damn about Kawhi Leonard," he passionately proclaimed.
With 60-plus games left in the season, the Clippers still have a long way to go before their fate this season can be sealed. However, if they want to right the ship while they still can, some drastic measures may need to be taken.
Related: Gregg Popovich on his first impression of Kawhi Leonard: "We just thought, 'Bruce Bowen'"
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Dec 3, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
