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"Disgusting": Draymond Green rips ex-Clipper over $50 million Kawhi Leonard demand
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- "Disgusting": Draymond Green rips ex-Clipper over $50 million Kawhi Leonard demand
Draymond Green ©Credit: IMAGO
Some old NBA decisions come back years later, especially when a former player still feels those decisions hurt his career. Danilo Gallinari 's recent comments about Kawhi Leonard and the 2019 trade that sent him from the LA Clippers to the Oklahoma City Thunder have now drawn a strong response from Draymond Green .
Green did not hold back, calling Gallinari's criticism of Leonard "disgusting." Gallinari revisited the trade on the 'A Cresta Alta' podcast, where he linked his move from Los Angeles to Leonard's decision to join the Clippers and team up with Paul George .
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"He should pay all of that $50 million," Gallinari said. "He changed the trajectory of my career and put me in a difficult situation by sending me away from Los Angeles."
Gallinari's comments stem from the 2019 offseason, when Leonard joined the Clippers in free agency and sought to team up with Paul George. Reports at the time said Leonard recruited George, who later asked the Oklahoma City Thunder for a trade to Los Angeles.
The Thunder ultimately sent George to the Clippers in a blockbuster deal. Oklahoma City received Gallinari, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , five first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps, ending Gallinari's time in Los Angeles.
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He had just completed one of the strongest seasons of his career with the Clippers. He averaged 19.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 68 games during the 2018-19 season before being included in the George trade.
Gallinari believes Leonard's role in bringing Paul George to Los Angeles played a part in his exit from the Clippers.
"What happened to my NBA career wasn't decided by a general manager or an owner, but by a player who decided that team wasn't good enough and wanted something else," Gallinari continued.
Gallinari believes Leonard's decision had a direct effect on his place with the Clippers.
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Now, on The Draymond Green Show, the Golden State Warriors forward responded to Gallinari's comments.
Draymond Green first addressed Gallinari's demand that Leonard should personally pay the full $50 million.
"I think wishing that the NBA took $50 million from a player is disgusting," Green said on The Draymond Green Show .
Green feels that wanting such a huge punishment goes too far, even if Gallinari was unhappy about being traded. He then questioned why Gallinari still connects his NBA career to Leonard.
"To walk around with this type of vendetta because you got traded, that also wasn't Danilo Gallinari's first time being traded," Green said.
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Green pointed out that Gallinari had already been traded before, so the Clippers move was not his first experience with an NBA trade. He directly rejected Gallinari's claim that Leonard ruined his career.
"So for him to sit and act as if Kawhi Leonard ruined his career, that's b*******," Green said.
Green's argument is that Gallinari's trade does not mean Leonard was responsible for the direction of his entire career.
Gallinari was traded for Paul George in 2019
The story goes back to one of the biggest moves of the 2019 NBA offseason.
Kawhi Leonard joined the Clippers as a free agent, but Paul George also arrived in Los Angeles. Reports at the time said Leonard had recruited George and wanted him to join the Clippers.
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The Clippers then made a blockbuster trade with the Thunder.
Los Angeles sent Danilo Gallinari, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and multiple first-round picks and pick swaps to Oklahoma City for George.
Gallinari had just enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career. He averaged 19.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists for the Clippers in 2018-19, as per ESPN's player page.
He then averaged 18.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 62 games for Oklahoma City in 2019-20.
Continuing his point, Green said that Leonard did not have the authority to execute the trade.
"Kawhi Leonard does not have the power to trade a player," Green said.
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Green is making a clear difference between Leonard's influence and the Clippers' power to make trades.
He said Leonard could ask the team to get a certain player, but he could not make the trade himself.
"He can request, hey I want y'all to go out there and get this guy, but he don't have the ability to make that trade," Green said.
The Clippers still had to make the final decision and complete the trade.
That point matters because the Clippers officially made the George trade through their basketball operations department. Green then linked this point to the Clippers' current salary-cap controversy.
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"That franchise have to agree, just like they had to agree that they were going to circumvent the cap," Green concluded.
Green's larger point is that the team made the final decisions, even if Leonard wanted another star to join him.
Green did not stop at the trade argument. He also questioned Gallinari's work ethic.
"Gallinari is one of those guys who was extremely talented, who would give you fits, but was a little lazy," Green on Gallinari's ability.
He praised Gallinari's skill but questioned his approach during his NBA career. That assessment reflects Green's opinion, not an established explanation for how Gallinari's career unfolded.
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Gallinari's final NBA season came in 2023-24, when he played for the Washington Wizards , Detroit Pistons , and Milwaukee Bucks . He appeared in 49 regular-season games across the three teams and averaged 5.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 12.8 minutes per game.
Despite ending his NBA career in a reduced role, Gallinari remained a productive player for much of his 14-season run. His argument is not that the 2019 trade ended his career immediately, but that Leonard's reported push for the Paul George deal altered the path it took.
Across his NBA career, Gallinari averaged 14.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game in 777 regular-season games.
Gallinari looks at the 2019 Clippers move from the point of view of what happened to his career. He believes Leonard's push to bring George to Los Angeles was closely connected to his trade.
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Green sees the situation differently.
His argument is that Leonard may have influenced the Clippers' plans, but the franchise had the final power to make the trade. The official deal sent Gallinari and other assets to Oklahoma City for George.
That is why Green rejected the idea that Leonard personally "ruined" Gallinari's career. He also strongly reacted to Gallinari's suggestion that Leonard should pay $50 million.
With both sides now sharing their views on the 2019 decision, does Gallinari still have a reason to blame Kawhi seven years later? What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments.
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