​Kawhi Leonard’s highly anticipated return to the Toronto Raptors has been put on hold as the NBA continues its investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers. ESPN insider Shams Charania reported on Thursday that the proposed Clippers-Raptors trade centered on Leonard will not be completed while the league’s inquiry remains active. During NBA Today, Charania explained that the two teams had been preparing to finalize the deal with the league-mandated trade call, but the NBA stepped in and paused those talks.
“The Raptors and Clippers were set to finalize this deal, do the trade call with the NBA,” Charania said. “The NBA has essentially paused that conversation until the end of their investigation.” He added that Toronto has chosen not to accept any potential consequences tied to the inquiry.
“The Raptors decide today that they will not be assuming the risk of any discipline or any other fallout that could happen with Kawhi Leonard after the league investigation is over,” Charania noted.
The delay comes less than two weeks after ESPN reported that the Clippers had agreed to trade Leonard to Toronto in exchange for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, a 2027 first-round pick swap, and two second-round picks. The move would bring Leonard back to the franchise he helped propel to the 2019 NBA title, where he earned Finals MVP honors after averaging 28.5 points in the Finals against the Golden State Warriors.
Leonard, who turned 35 on June 29, has one season left on his contract with a value of $50.3 million. ESPN noted that he would be eligible to sign a two-year, $123.7 million extension with Toronto once the deal is finalized. However, the trade cannot proceed until the NBA concludes its inquiry.
The Clippers issued a statement to ESPN indicating their cooperation with the investigation over the past 10 months, including dozens of interviews and thousands of documents. “On June 30, we reached an agreement in principle to trade Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors,” the Clippers said. “We have since been informed that the trade can only be finalized if the Raptors’ ownership group assumes the risk of penalties related to Kawhi’s contract that could theoretically result from the ongoing investigation.” The team added that they expect the trade to be finalized once the investigation concludes.
“At the heart of this investigation are Joe Sanberg and Aspiration,” the Clippers stated, noting that they did not funnel money to Kawhi Leonard through Aspiration. The NBA’s probe focuses on whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap through Leonard’s $28 million endorsement deal with Aspiration, a former green banking company that also had a $300 million partnership with the team.
ESPN’s Baxter Holmes had reported on June 5 that Leonard, his uncle and business adviser Dennis Robertson, and others were involved in these arrangements.