Kawhi Leonard's NBA Summer League Appearance Makes 1 Thing Clear

The Toronto Raptors are close to bringing back Kawhi Leonard, the Finals MVP of their 2019 championship run. The trade has sat frozen for the better part of a week, but will soon go through.

This has made for an odd holding pattern for a club coming off a 46-36 finish and the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference, now looking to bring back a franchise icon.

Toronto’s 2025-26 season ended in the first round, a seven-game loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers decided by a Game 7 defeat on May 3. The front office answered by pursuing a star it knows well, agreeing on June 30 to acquire Leonard from the Los Angeles Clippers.

Under the framework, the Raptors would package Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick with a pair of unprotected 2031 and 2033 first-rounders, a 2027 first-round swap and two second-round picks, all headed to the Clippers for the two-time Finals MVP.

But the deal has yet to reach the official finish line. On Thursday, the two clubs announced they were holding it in place until the NBA completes an investigation into the Clippers.

That uncertainty has not kept Leonard away from his would-be new team. Last week, he attended Kyle Lowry’s one-day contract ceremony, and on Monday, he turned up courtside at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, a scene documented by NBA on Prime, watching the franchise he will soon join.

Kawhi Leonard is in Vegas to watch the NBA Summer League 🤩 pic.twitter.com/8OKcw7t9ql

— NBA on Prime (@NBAonPrime) July 13, 2026

For Raptors fans, the appearance read as a sign of buy-in, and what it really makes clear is that this deal is getting done. 

Leonard spent one season in Toronto before signing with the Clippers as an unrestricted free agent in 2019, a month after that title run.

“The Raptors remain eager to bring Kawhi back to Toronto and look forward to a swift resolution for our players, our organization, and our fans,” the team said in a statement.

At the center of the delay is a league probe into whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap by routing money to Leonard through a $28 million endorsement deal with the now-bankrupt firm Aspiration. The company also carried a $300 million, 23-year sponsorship with the Clippers, and owner Steve Ballmer personally put $60 million into it.

Aspiration co-founder Joe Sanberg pleaded guilty to wire fraud and drew a 14-year prison sentence. The Clippers deny funneling money to Leonard and have cast themselves as victims of a fraud run by Sanberg. Leonard and his uncle and business adviser, Dennis Robertson, were interviewed by league investigators.

“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 Clippers said in their own statement — acknowledging the NBA’s stance, which was just recently made clear after the deal was agreed to in principle.

Leonard averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists over 65 games for the Clippers in 2025-26, and he owns two titles and two Finals MVP awards, in 2014 with San Antonio and in 2019 with Toronto.