Kawhi Leonard Trolled by Clippers’ Ivica Zubac After Scandal

Six-time All-NBA LA Clippers superstar small forward Kawhi Leonard has had a summer to forget.

A cascading series of reports from Pablo Torre of The Athletic cast a weird pall over the Clippers’ media festivities two weeks ago. Torre shed light on what seems to be some cap-evading maneuvers from owner Steve Ballmer to potentially funnel extra salary money to Leonard via now-disgraced former Clippers sponsor Aspiration, a fraudulent tree-planting company that paid Leonard big money to do absolutely zero promotional work.

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Now, Leonard’s teammates are cagily addressing his controversial summer, with an NBA investigation swirling around him and Ballmer.

In a media day appearance on former Clippers Sixth Man of the Year guard Lou Williams’ podcast “The Underground Lounge,” All-Defensive LA center Ivica Zubac trolled Leonard mightily when asked which teammate he’d most likely to switch places with — Leonard was shouted out in all the wrong ways.

“I like being myself, but if I had to… being Kawhi this past summer was not easy, so I’m not taking Kawhi,” Zubac joked.

On the court whenever he can play, however, the 6-foot-7 San Diego State product still has a game to die for.

Last year, Leonard averaged 21.5 points on .498/.411/.810 shooting splits, 5.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.5 blocks a night, while also submitting solid perimeter defense. The 34-year-old is no longer in his two-time Defensive Player of the Year prime on that end (he’s a bit slower), but he’s still a threat there.

Health, more than anything else, has defined the second half of his career, and has hurt his tenure with his hometown team. Leonard has missed an average of 22.8 games across his five regular seasons with the Clippers, sitting for 45 bouts in 2024-25. He has also only been healthy at the end of two of LA’s playoff runs.

The 28-year-old Zubac, meanwhile, enjoyed his most impressive season yet with the 50-32 Clippers last year. While playing in a career-high 80 games (although he appeared in 72 of 72 games during a pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season), Zubac averaged a career-most 16.8 points on 62.8 percent shooting from the field and 66.1 percent free throw shooting, 12.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 blocks and 0.7 steals a night.

Clippers’ ‘Big Three’

Along with Leonard and Zubac, the Clippers’ “Big Three” for 2025-26 is rounded out by former 2018 MVP point guard James Harden, who at 36 remains a potent distributor and scorer. LA has made some key new additions this year after a disappointing first-round playoff exit, trading away guard Norman Powell for athletic big man John Collins and signing a trio of aging former All-Stars in center Brook Lopez and guards Chris Paul and Bradley Beal.

LA’s age and injury history may impede it from being ranked among the absolute top tier in the Western Conference, but if the Clippers can remain healthy through the playoffs, perhaps they’ll have the talent to make a sneaky-deep run.

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