The deal had been up in the air for over two months, but the Toronto Raptors and the L.A. Clippers have now finally agreed on a trade.
The franchises themselves confirmed this on Monday evening (local time). According to the announcement, the terms of the deal have remained unchanged since early July. Specifically, this means that Kawhi Leonard is moving to the Toronto Raptors, whilst in return, Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two unprotected first-round picks, a pick swap and two second-round picks are heading to Los Angeles.
The deal had been up in the air for a long time, as it was still unclear whether, and to what extent, Leonard and the Clippers would be penalised for circumventing the salary cap. For Kawhi, the matter ended relatively lightly; he merely had to pay $700,000 to the league, whilst at the Clippers, owner Steve Ballmer, amongst others, was suspended for one year.
The Clippers had subsequently announced they would take legal action against the NBA’s ruling, but Ballmer backtracked on Sunday, stating that he would refrain from doing so and would instead look to the future.
The Raptors, meanwhile, now get their dream signing, who is set to bolster a team that narrowly lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of last year’s play-offs (3–4) . The 35-year-old previously played for the Canadians during the 2018–19 season. At that time, the forward led the team to the title as Finals MVP – before moving to the Clippers a few months later.
