Kawhi Leonard Rumors: Sixers, Celtics Trade Unlikely Due To 'Off Limits' Players

Trading Kawhi Leonard to the Philadelphia 76ers or the Boston Celtics looks unlikely for the San Antonio Spurs as of now due to the lack of top players they would be getting in return.

Leonard's desire to be traded away from San Antonio was revealed last month and while his preference was a move to the Los Angeles Lakers, a Western Conference rival, the 28-year-old still has a year remaining on his deal.

Despite their initial reluctance, the San Antonio franchise entered negotiations with the Lakers over Leonard nonetheless. However, things are at a stalemate as they are said to be demanding a steep package asking for the likes of Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart, as well as two first-round draft picks and the swapping of two more draft picks.

With the Lakers signing Lance Stephenson, Javale McGee, Rajon Rondo and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on one-year deals following the arrival of LeBron James, it looks likely they will instead wait for Leonard to become a free agent next year rather than giving away their young prospects.

That leaves the Sixers and the Celtics in the mix who are also in discussions over Leonard as the Spurs look to avoid losing the 2014 Finals MVP for nothing. However, any potential deal will likely be draft pick-heavy as both teams are keeping their top players "off limits." With San Antonio's goal of remaining in the playoffs, such a deal won't work for them.

"[Joel] Embiid, Ben Simmons, Markelle Fultz — they're off limits," NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski said on ESPN. "Boston's really got their top five players off limits. Boston's more willing to do a deal that's (draft) pick-heavy."

"But the Spurs want good players back. They don't want to rebuild. They want picks, and they want guys who can help them stay in the playoffs," he said.

Outside their promising trio, the Sixers do not have many enticing players to trade along with their draft picks that would interest the Spurs, though including last year's No. 1 NBA draft pick in Fultz, who had his share of injury problems, could make a difference.

As for the Celtics, Wojnarowski was likely referencing Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum as their top five players that were off limits.

The Boston side do hold multiple first round draft picks they could offer but given that Leonard has a year remaining on his current deal, trading for him now could be nothing more than a one-year rental, so including any of those players is less than ideal.

If either of the two teams were to end up trading for Leonard however, it would make them instant favorites in the Eastern Conference, according to FS1 analyst Chris Broussard, who believes the Sixers are likelier to sign him.

"I think that if Kawhi goes there, I’m going with Philadelphia," Broussard said. "Because even though they got beat 4-1 by Boston in the playoffs, it could’ve easily been 4-1 the other way. Those games were close, they just couldn’t get it done in the clutch. Let’s see what Markelle Fultz does. If they get Kawhi, he could be gone. I think Philly is right there, but I’d go with Boston as the clear favorite [as of now]."