TORONTO – Kawhi Leonard now appears to have a clear path to a return to the Toronto Raptors.
The NBA announced Wednesday it has concluded its investigation into salary cap circumvention of Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers, handing down severe penalties to the team, its owner and several executives. However, the league said it would not suspend Leonard or void his contract, clearing a major obstacle to a trade with the Raptors that was suspended back in July.
“Integrity and respect for this game are fundamental to who I am,” Leonard said in a statement. “I accept full responsibility for the errors of judgment of those in my immediate circle and regret the distraction this situation has caused for fans and my family.”
“I entered into my contract with the Clippers and the related agreements in good faith, fully committed to fulfilling my obligations and without knowledge of any intent on any part to circumvent the salary cap.”
On Wednesday, the NBA stripped the Clippers of five first-round picks from 2029 to 2033 and fined the team US$30 million after an independent investigation found a range of misconduct and multiple serious rule violations.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and president of business operations Gillian Zucker were suspended for one year, and president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank was suspended for six months.
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Leonard was fined $700,000 after an investigation found he violated bypass rules by obtaining off-court income opportunities through the Clippers and failed to reimburse personal expenses paid by the team.
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Leonard’s uncle and former business manager Dennis Robertson were banned from doing business with NBA teams and their affiliates for five years.
“For 15 years, my priority has been to give everything to my family, the game and those I play with on the court,” Leonard said. “As I move back to Toronto, I’m focusing on what I can control, closing this chapter and moving forward with a clean slate.”
Once the trade between Toronto and Los Angeles is completed, Brandon Ingram, Grady Dick, two unprotected first-round picks, a trade of 2027 picks and two second-round picks will go to Los Angeles. The Raptors had no comment Wednesday about the Clippers’ punishment and said there would be no media contact with team personnel until the deal became official.
Even though the deal was on hold for most of the summer, the three players mentioned in the deal still attended events with their new teams.
Leonard was in the front row at Kyle Lowry’s press conference when he announced he was retiring from the Raptors on July 7 at the OVO Sports Center, Toronto’s training facility. Ingram attended a Clippers summer league game in Las Vegas on July 10.
Last season with the Clippers, Leonard averaged 27.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.9 steals and 0.4 blocks per game.
Ingram averaged 21.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists in one season in Toronto, but was injured 11 minutes into Game 5 of the Raptors’ first-round playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers. On May 8, he had surgery on his right heel.
Dick took a step back in his third season in the NBA, averaging 14 minutes per game in 2025-26 while averaging six points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists, all career lows.
If a Toronto-Los Angeles deal can be done, Leonard will join a Raptors roster that includes star Scottie Barnes, Canadian swingman R.J. Barrett, talented rookie Collin Murray-Boyles, point guard Immanuel Quickley and young rotation players Jamal Sheed and Ja’Coby Walter.
Leonard is a seven-time All-Star, seven-time NBA All-Star, two-time NBA champion (with San Antonio in 2014 and Toronto in 2019) and is generally considered one of the game’s best defenders.
He was a central player in the Raptors’ 2019 title run, including the game-clinching Game 7 win in Toronto’s Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers.
During the off-season, he signed with his hometown Clippers as a free agent, agreeing to a three-year contract worth US$103 million.
After opting out of the final year of that contract, Leonard re-signed with the Clippers in August 2021 to a maximum four-year contract worth $176.3 million, with the fourth year being a player option. However, he missed the entire 2021–22 season due to a partial tear of the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
That 2021 contract was at the center of controversy after allegations surfaced in September 2025 that Leonard had signed a $28 million no-show agreement with Aspiration, an environmental company that filed for bankruptcy in March 2025 after co-founder Joe Sanberg was arrested and charged with fraud.
The proposed deal did not require any action on Leonard’s part other than remaining with the Clippers.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 2, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press