Stars poised to move in free agency

Kawhi Leonard is planning meetings in Los Angeles. Kevin Durant will do the same in New York.

Those are the cities where they’ll begin free agency.

Where they will end it will finally start to get clearer soon.

NBA teams will start opening their checkbooks Sunday at 3 p.m. PDT, when the negotiating window for one of the most hotly anticipated free-agent periods begins and with more than 200 players — including two dozen players with at least one All-Star appearance — eligible to change teams in the coming weeks.

“Some people could say, ‘Oh my God, look at all that player movement,’ ” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said this past season. “On the other hand, that player movement could be very positive for a lot of teams.”

Leonard, Durant, Kemba Walker, Klay Thompson, Nikola Vucevic, Al Horford and Khris Middleton are among the top players who will be deciding whether or not to change addresses.

Boston apparently knows it will be losing Kyrie Irving, since a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Saturday that fellow All-Star point guard Walker has informed the Charlotte Hornets that he’s leaving them for the Celtics. Irving’s focus is believed to be on joining the Brooklyn Nets.

No deals can be signed until July 6 because of the league’s annual moratorium, though players and teams can enter into agreements starting Sunday.

Changes could shift the balance of NBA power considerably — especially if Durant leaves the Warriors and Leonard leaves the NBA champion Toronto Raptors.

Durant will be pursued by the Nets, New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers along with Golden State; Leonard is likely to hear pitches from the Lakers, Clippers and Raptors.

Durant and Leonard were asked countless times this past season about their free-agent plans. Neither offered much of a hint. “I just want to play and just let people remember that I played hard at both ends of the floor, I was a winner, and that’s basically it,” Leonard said during the NBA Finals, on his way to winning his second ring and second finals MVP award. “I’m just here enjoying my dream, having fun.”