Thank you, Kawhi Leonard

While no one in San Antonio is likely to be feeling charitable toward Kawhi Leonard, the rest of us should thank the quiet superstar of the Spurs. On Friday, his camp put out word he would like to be traded by the Spurs. Thus began the NBA’s annual Chaos Month — that period of time running from the NBA Draft and through Summer League where a million different threads weave and intersect in the glory that is the offseason.

Kawhi’s trade request got us going six days before the draft, adding immense intrigue to that event and adding another marquee star to the movement market. So thanks, Kawhi. You saved us from another weekend arguing about Luka Doncic.

Here’s a timeline showing how everything fell apart in San Antonio. Paul Flannery pulled together the different threads to look ahead, including at which teams have the best chance at making a winning offer to San Antonio. Here’s a fuller investigation of six teams who could trade for Leonard from Matt Ellentuck. I wrote about the death of Spurs’ mystique, which was really all about Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich all long. Here’s Bruno Passos on what trading Kawhi does to the Spurs’ timeline. And yes, we’re thinking about the potential for Leonard to join LeBron James and Paul George on the Lakers, too.

Ricky O’Donnell’s newest mock draft investigates what he feels a perfect draft would look like. In other words, what choices would teams make to get good marks from draft analysts like O’Donnell.

Unsurprisingly, Doncic goes No. 1.

By the way, Doncic is still playing basketball for Real Madrid. He’s in the ACB Finals this week, battling Rodrigue Beaubois’s Baskonia. Real can clinch on Tuesday. If they do, Doncic can make the NBA Draft in person.

Come on, NBA teams. Don’t let the top draft prospects slip!

Brilliant piece by Seerat Sohi on Kobe Bryant, who is still telling his story, even though we’re no longer falling for it.

Holy feet dragging, Batman! Zach Lowe reports the NBA put out a memo telling teams it may end the age minimum ... but no earlier than 2021. That means two more years of one-and-done, at least.

Next weekend, Reggie Bullock will become the first active NBA player to ride on the league’s float at NYC Pride, doing so in honor of his sister, who was murdered in 2014. She was a transgender woman. Bullock says, “I just want to let them know that as a straight person, I am not within that community, but I see y’all as people and I see y’all as people that I love.”

The WNBA’s three-point revolution is also continuing apace.

The Basketball Tournament is going to lean all the way into its weird, exciting crunch time reforms.

Kevin Durant’s father offers a touching letter to his son.

FIBA has extended its leader’s contract through 2031 despite mass disagreement within European basketball about said leaders’ reforms.

Be excellent to each other.