As the San Antonio Spurs prepare for an elimination game against the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series, questions surrounding Kawhi Leonard’s future with the team keep on piling up.

Leonard, who is eligible for a super-max extension worth at least $217 million over five years this summer, only played seven games before deciding to shut it down because of a nagging quad injury.

Without their best player, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich was still able to will his team to the postseason for the 20th straight year, earning the seventh seed in the West and a date with the defending champion Golden State Warriors.

However, after three games, it becomes apparent that the Spurs don’t have much firepower to go toe-to-toe even with the Stephen Curry-less Warriors. With the Spurs’ season very likely to end this Sunday, all eyes will be on Kawhi as he heads into the biggest summer of his basketball career.

What’s up with Kawhi?

While rumors of a Kawhi Leonard blockbuster trade have run rampant the past few weeks, the Spurs have kept their cards close to their chest. And although Pop has expressed some levels of frustrations with Kawhi’s mysterious condition, people within the organization have remained hopeful that they can fix the issue.

Veteran NBA insider Marc Stein of the New York Times reported this week that the Spurs are still giving off vibe they don’t want to part ways with Kawhi despite the circus the organization endured this year.

“One well-placed insider who has closely monitored this situation told me recently that the Spurs continue to give off signals behind the scenes that they won't trade Leonard,” Stein stated in a Q&A article.

However, Stein still believes Leonard’s future in San Antonio will heavily hinge on the outcome of the contract extension negotiations and of course an impending one-on-one pep talk with Pop himself.

More news out of San Antonio:

The Spurs are facing the prospect of being swept by the Warriors if they don’t find a way to stop the opponents’ well-oiled offensive system. It is true that Golden State has plenty of talent even without the two-time NBA MVP, but a major bulk of their points in the series have been coming from easy buckets on the open floor.

Here’s NBA.com video showing the potency of the Warriors’ open-court offense in the series:

Down 0-3, the Spurs will try to live for another day as they look to extend the series against the Warriors to Game 5. The Spurs will take on the Warriors at 3:30 PM Eastern Time at AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas.

LaMarcus Aldridge has done all the heavy-lifting throughout the series, averaging 22.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in three games. But again, without the dominant two-way player, the Spurs just don’t have a lick of a chance against the champs.
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