The NBA’s punishment of the Clippers over salary cap circumvention tied to Kawhi Leonard may end up handing the Warriors a real advantage, and not just because one of their division rivals has been knocked down a peg.
Los Angeles was stripped of five first-round picks in a sweeping penalty that will put a hard squeeze on the franchise’s ability to build over the next several years. According to Third Apron’s Yossi Gozlan, the Clippers have gone from nine first-round picks over the next seven drafts to four, and none of them can be used in a trade because of the Stepien rule.
That matters for Golden State in a couple of ways. First, it weakens a direct rival in the West for the foreseeable future.
Even if the Clippers keep trying to stay competitive, the punishment leaves them without the draft capital that usually gives teams flexibility. And with the NBA’s new lottery reform system, the incentive to bottom out isn’t what it used to be anyway.
The bigger issue for the Warriors could be the trade market. The Clippers have long been one of the league’s more aggressive teams when a big name becomes available, so losing that kind of firepower changes the landscape. This all traces back to the Clippers’ 2019 free-agent deal for Leonard and the blockbuster trade for Paul George that helped bring him in.
Clippers updated first-round pick situation after being docked five first-round picks.
They go from 9 first-round picks to 4 over the next seven drafts.
Assuming the Stepien rule applies to forfeited first-round picks, they have 0 first-round picks available to trade. pic.twitter.com/EtOG8AOxwe
- Yossi Gozlan (@YossiGozlan) September 2, 2026
There were already signs the Clippers were operating under pressure. The James Harden and Ivica Zubac trades before February’s mid-season deadline suggested they were trying to navigate around what was coming, and the Leonard trade with the Toronto Raptors has also been sitting on hold while this investigation played out.
Still, the long-term picture looks rougher now. The source points to the Clippers’ hopes of landing another star to pair with the young backcourt of Darius Garland and Keaton Wagler, but their only realistic path now is free agency. Even that is a tough sell after a punishment that leaves them with no draft leverage.
Golden State, by contrast, is sitting on a much cleaner hand. ESPN has pegged the Warriors as the team most likely to make a major move before February’s mid-season trade deadline, and if they do go shopping, they’ll have one fewer team to bid against. The Warriors still have all of their draft capital except for a top-20 protected pick in 2030, and they also have nearly $100 million in expiring contracts, including Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green.
That gives Golden State real flexibility, whether the move comes at the deadline or in free agency next year. The Warriors have spent years keeping their options open, and with the Clippers now boxed in, that approach suddenly looks even more valuable.
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