Clippers have been trending younger

The Raptors were in the same championship-less boat before Leonard saved them.

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The Clippers, meanwhile, are still trying to get over the hump.

Leonard averaged 25.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.7 steals over six seasons with the Clippers and was selected to four All-Star teams, four All-NBA teams and two All-Defensive teams. Leonard averaged a career-high 27.9 points while playing 65 games last season.

Yet most will only remember that Leonard's tenure in the City of Angels netted zero Larry O’Brien trophies and instead plenty of load management and one ongoing salary cap circumvention investigation. The Clippers, of course, have been accused of paying Leonard $28 million through an endorsement deal with bankrupt sustainability company Aspiration.

Whether there was salary cap circumvention or not, L.A. truly went all in on its latest bid to win a title to no avail, as encapsulated by the infamous Paul George-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander deal that accompanied the launch of the Leonard era.

Unfortunately for the Clippers, Leonard, George and the era’s other big-name players were rarely healthy or at their peaks when the lights were brightest. And in Oklahoma City, Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to its first title and developed into a two-time league MVP, all before his 28th birthday.