Jason Burgos
A new rumor reveals the one penalty from the NBA that would make the Toronto Raptors back out of an agreed-upon trade with the Los Angeles Clippers for Kawhi Leonard.
It has been a busy last few weeks around the NBA. With free agency no longer being as meaningful as it once was, trades are now the pathway for star players to switch teams. This summer, we have seen the Milwaukee Bucks ship team legend Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. The Boston Celtics shockingly trade Jaylen Brown to their rivals, the Philadelphia 76ers. And the Memphis Grizzlies even found a new home for Ja Morant.
The Clippers agreeing to a deal to send Leonard to his previous team, the Raptors, was another of the major trades over the last month. However, the deal was thrown into limbo last week when it was revealed that the NBA informed Toronto they could be negatively affected by penalties levied following an investigation into salary cap impropriety by the Clippers when they signed Leonard in 2019.
According to Raptors reporter Josh Lewenberg, the franchise remains confident the seven-time All-Star will be on their roster next season. However, there is one potential punishment that would make them scrap plans to finalize the deal.
“For what it’s worth, Raptors continue to talk/act like a team that’s unworried. Sense is the only thing that would jeopardize the trade is the unlikely scenario where Kawhi’s contract is voided.”
– Josh Lewenberg
There are a variety of penalties the Clippers and Leonard could be hit with at some point in the next few weeks. However, the Raptors insider notes that a suspension for the forward is still something the organization is willing to “work around” to acquire his skills this offseason.
In Leonard’s lone season in Toronto, he led the franchise to its only NBA Championship. He remains a legend for the fanbase despite leaving them behind in 2019 for a lucrative payday in free agency with the Clippers.
