The long-delayed trade sending Kawhi Leonard back to the Toronto Raptors is about to become official. With the NBA closing its cap-circumvention investigation against the Los Angeles Clippers on September 2, there are no barriers left, and Hoops Rumors reports the transaction is expected to clear “in the next couple of days.”
What each team gets
Raptors receive: Kawhi Leonard
Clippers receive: Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, 2031 & 2033 unprotected first-round picks, 2030 & 2033 second-round picks, 2027 first-round pick swap
Leonard left little ambiguity about how he views the situation. “As I return to Toronto, I am focused on what I can control, closing this chapter, and moving forward with a clean slate,” the two-time Finals MVP said following the league’s ruling last week.
For the Raptors, this is the reunion of a franchise icon — the player who delivered their only championship in 2019. At 35, Leonard will be managed carefully, but his two-way impact remains elite when available. For the Clippers, the haul represents a genuine rebuild starter: Brandon Ingram averaged 21.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists across 77 games with Toronto in 2025-26. He had right heel surgery in May, though the Clippers do not expect it to affect his 2026-27 availability, per CBS Sports. Gradey Dick and a stack of future picks complete a package that gives Los Angeles something to build on after the league stripped the franchise of five first-round selections and fined owner Steve Ballmer $30 million.
A deal agreed June 30 — finally free to close
The original agreement was reached on June 30 but was placed on hold while the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz investigated allegations that the Clippers arranged $28 million in off-court compensation for Leonard through affiliated companies. The NBA confirmed the violations, suspended Ballmer for one year and banned basketball operations president Lawrence Frank for six months — the stiffest cap-circumvention penalties in league history. That process is now finished. NBA training camps open in under two weeks, and both franchises can finally prepare with their full rosters in place.
