NBA: Kawhi Leonard traded to Toronto Raptors
The two-time NBA Finals MVP was traded back to the place where he won his second championship in 2019 for a package including Brandon Ingram and draft assets.
Kawhi Leonard during the 2024-2025 NBA Playoffs
Kawhi Leonard has reportedly been traded back to the Toronto Raptors, per ESPN's Shams Charania, seven years after winning an NBA championship in his lone season with the franchise.
The seven-time All-Star is on the move after having arguably his best statistical season at the age of 34, in which he averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists on 51% shooting from the field and 39% from behind the 3-point line on a career-high 6.8 attempts per game for the Los Angeles Clippers.
In return, the Clippers will receive forward Brandon Ingram, young guard Gradey Dick, two first-round picks, one pick swap and two second-round picks.
As of the time of publishing, the years and potential protections on those draft picks have not been specified.
The trade agreement was reported on the day after Leonard's 35th birthday.
Leonard will join a Raptors core that features All-Star forward Scottie Barnes as well as guards R.J. Barrett and Immanuel Quickley. In the frontcourt, they are led by Austrian center Jakob Poeltl and forward Collin Murray-Boyles, who will be entering his second year.
The Raptors will look to vault themselves into the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference with a win-now move. Last season, they finished 5th in the East with a 46-36 record, then fell at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the Playoffs in seven games.
Meanwhile, the Clippers have now traded away the final piece of their "big three" of James Harden, Ivica Zubac and Leonard. The former two were traded to the Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers, respectively, at the trade deadline last season.
The team will now look to add the haul from the Leonard trade to retool around guard Darius Garland, received in return for Harden, and rookie Keaton Wagler, drafted with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft that was received in exchange for Zubac.
Last season, the Clippers rebounded mid-season after a slow start, but the two trades ultimately pushed them back to ninth in the Western Conference, and they were eliminated in the play-in at the hands of the Golden State Warriors.
Leonard made headlines last August when reporting by the podcast "Pablo Torre Finds Out" alleged that the two-time Finals MVP had been receiving money from defunct environmental start-up Aspiration to circumvent the NBA's salary cap.
The league launched a subsequent investigation, which is still ongoing. The trade now complicates the scope of potential penalties for the Clippers and Leonard himself. Leonard's contract has one year and $50.3 million remaining.
Leonard was previously traded to the Raptors from the San Antonio Spurs in 2018. He spent just one season with the franchise, which resulted in the aformentioned title. He subsequently joined the Clippers in free agency the following summer.
The move is the second major departure from Los Angeles, with LeBron James announcing earlier in the day that he would be leaving the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency.
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