Danilo Gallinari didn’t hold back when he revisited the 2019 blockbuster that sent Paul George from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Los Angeles Clippers. On the A Cresta Alta podcast, he aimed his criticism squarely at Kawhi Leonard, arguing that the former Clippers star should have faced a far bigger punishment and that Leonard’s actions altered the path of his own NBA career.
“He changed the trajectory of my career and put me in a difficult situation by sending me away from Los Angeles. What happened to my NBA career wasn’t decided by a general manager or an owner, but by a player who decided that team wasn’t good enough and wanted something else.
He should give that money to charity. He should pay all $50 million, not just $700,000.”
Gallinari was referring to the $700,000 fine Leonard received after the salary cap circumvention investigation into the Clippers. In Gallinari’s view, that penalty was nowhere near enough, and he said Leonard should donate the full $50 million salary to charity instead.
The trade, of course, was part of the Clippers’ push to build around Leonard after he arrived fresh off a championship and Finals MVP with the Toronto Raptors. Leonard wanted another star alongside him, and the Clippers answered by bringing in George. Gallinari and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were among the pieces sent out in the deal.
That’s the reality role players face when a team gets a shot at a superstar. The front office makes the call, the roster gets reshaped, and someone else has to move on.
And in Gallinari’s case, the story didn’t end with his exit from Los Angeles. He had just posted the best numbers of his NBA career with the Clippers, averaging 19.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists while shooting 46.3% from the field and 43.3% from three.
He stayed productive in Oklahoma City too, putting up 18.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists on 43.4% shooting overall and 40.6% from deep. The Thunder made the playoffs before he left the following offseason.
He also wasn’t left staring at a financial setback. Gallinari had signed a three-year, $64.7 million deal with the Clippers, then followed that with a three-year, $61.4 million contract with the Atlanta Hawks after one season in Oklahoma City.
His career did eventually tail off, but that came with age and injuries in the background. By then, he was already in his thirties, which makes the idea that one trade several years earlier derailed everything a tough sell.
There’s also a difference between Leonard helping shape the Clippers’ roster and Leonard personally sending Gallinari out the door. Leonard’s push for another star set the move in motion, but the Clippers’ front office was the one that worked out and completed the deal.
Gallinari’s frustration with player power is easy to understand. Getting moved because another player wants the roster changed can’t feel good.
Still, saying Leonard changed his career is one thing. Saying he derailed it goes a step too far when Gallinari kept producing, reached the playoffs, and landed another contract worth more than $60 million soon after.
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