Kawhi Leonard Trade Nears Completion for Raptors
The trade that has hovered over the NBA summer like a storm cloud is finally edging toward daylight.
Nearly three months after the Toronto Raptors and Los Angeles Clippers agreed in principle to a blockbuster that would bring Kawhi Leonard back to Canada, the deal is now effectively cleared — waiting only on a formal league call to make it official.
No conference with league lawyers had been scheduled as of Monday evening, but that’s a logistical detail. The real obstacles, the ones that threatened to blow up the trade entirely, have been stripped away.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer confirmed Sunday he will not contest the league’s severe punishment for salary-cap violations tied to Leonard’s last contract. That decision removes the final layer of uncertainty around Leonard’s status and his deal.
The penalties were brutal: suspensions for Ballmer and basketball operations chief Lawrence Frank, a $30-million fine, and the loss of five first-round draft picks. For a time, that fallout rattled the framework of the Leonard trade, forcing both teams to pause while the Clippers stabilized their front office and the league completed its investigation.
At the heart of the case sat Leonard himself. The league ordered him to repay $700,000 (U.S.) in improper benefits. On top of that, he has now agreed to waive a trade kicker on his current contract so the deal can squeeze under the cap rules, according to sources granted anonymity because the transaction is not yet official.
That concession is not small change. Waiving the trade kicker will cost Leonard almost $8 million on next season’s salary. It was the only way to make the math work, and it shoves the Raptors right up against the first apron of the salary cap, limiting their flexibility with sign-and-trade moves, existing trade exceptions and future salary matching.
The price, though, has never changed.
Toronto is set to receive Leonard in exchange for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, second-rounders in 2030 and 2033, and a potential swap of first-round picks in 2027. The structure agreed to in June still stands. The league’s stamp of approval is all that’s missing.
The trade call could be arranged in minutes once the sides and the league office are ready. For weeks, the holdup centered on one critical concern: the Raptors needed assurance Leonard would neither be suspended nor have his contract voided as a result of the Clippers’ cap contraventions. Without that clarity, the risk was too great.
Those fears have now eased. As the league’s board of governors convened in New York for two days of meetings beginning Sunday, attention sharpened on the long-anticipated move. With the investigation resolved and Ballmer opting not to push back, the path cleared.
Implications for the Raptors
For the Raptors, the implications stretch beyond the immediate jolt of reacquiring the star who delivered them a championship.
Once the trade becomes official, Toronto can open negotiations on a contract extension that would begin in the 2027-28 season and could reach as much as $126 million over two years. That deal would keep Leonard, now 35, in Raptors colours through the end of the 2028-29 campaign.
There is nuance to come. Toronto could push for protections on the back end, potentially insisting the second year of the extension is not fully guaranteed. That would give the franchise some insurance and financial flexibility as Leonard moves deeper into his mid-30s.
For now, though, the story is simpler.
The penalties have landed. The money has been adjusted. The trade kicker is gone. The draft picks are lined up.
All that’s left is a phone call that could restore one of the most consequential partnerships in Raptors history — and reshape the top tier of the Eastern Conference once again.
