Kawhi Leonard trade updates: 76ers remain confident they can swing deal for Spurs star, report says

The Sixers hope to acquire Leonard, and then use that trade to entice LeBron James to join the team

After Paul George decided to stay with the Oklahoma City Thunder on a four-year deal, the LeBron James sweepstakes got even more interesting. That eliminated the possibility of George and LeBron linking up with the Los Angeles Lakers, and figures to make the Lakers' pursuit of LeBron more difficult. 

Other teams have sensed that uncertainty, and have tried to swoop in. The Denver Nuggets are doing their best to get a meeting, while the Philadelphia 76ers are linking up with LeBron's reps in Los Angeles on Sunday. That is interesting, of course, but part of the Sixers' pitch may be even more intriguing. 

According to a report from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Sixers will try to sell LeBron's group on the possibility of teaming up with Kawhi Leonard -- not in Los Angeles, but in Philadelphia. They apparently feel confident that they're still in the running to swing a trade for the disgruntled San Antonio Spurs star. Via ESPN:

The 76ers have also been engaged in talks with the San Antonio Spurs on a potential Kawhi Leonard trade, and so far, have kept three players off-limits in talks, team sources tell ESPN -- Embiid, Simmons and Markelle Fultz.

The Spurs have been pursuing a package for Leonard that combines future assets and players who can help them stay a playoff team in the present. The Sixers have shown a willingness to trade for Leonard without a promise that he'd re-sign with them in 2019, when he'd be able to opt out of his contract. Leonard has been at odds with the Spurs for months and asked for a trade -- preferably to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Sixers already have the cap space to simply sign LeBron James, so if they were able to make a trade for Leonard, they wouldn't have to make any subsequent moves to add "The King." And you would have to imagine that joining a team with Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and Kawhi Leonard would be pretty enticing for LeBron. 

But, of course, agreeing to a deal with the Spurs for Leonard is still a big "if." Regardless, both of these stories will be fascinating to follow in the next few days.