Former Spur Bruce Bowen loses TV job after comments about Kawhi Leonard, report says

SAN ANTONIO – There’s more fallout from the Kawhi Leonard saga as former Spurs great Bruce Bowen has reportedly lost his TV analyst job because of comments he made about Leonard more than a month ago.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Monday that Bowen would not return next season as the television game analyst for the Los Angeles Clippers.

The report said Bowen, a three-time champion with the Spurs, was expected to extend his contract with Fox Sports West, but both sides did not move forward after Bowen’s comments about Leonard during an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio on June 21.  

In the interview, Bowen said Leonard was “getting bad advice” in regard to how he was handling his situation with the Spurs.

Bowen added, "I think what you're starting to see now is an individual given a certain amount of advice, and it's not the right advice. Here it is: You were protected in San Antonio.”

Bowen’s transcript read, in part: 

“I think there's nothing but excuses going on. So first it was 'Well, I was misdiagnosed.' Look here: You got $18 million this year, and you think that they're trying to rush you? You didn't play for the most part a full season this year. And you're the go-to guy, you're the franchise, and you want to say that they didn't have your best interest at heart? Are you kidding me?"

The Clippers have a strong interest in signing Leonard next offseason, should he become a free agent after a year in Toronto. Leonard is from the Los Angeles area, and his advisers have said he wants to play in Southern California.

The Spurs dealt Leonard to the Raptors after a tumultuous year when Leonard went from being the face of the franchise to demanding a trade out of San Antonio. 

Bowen declined to comment on Monday’s news, Wojnarowski reported.