Seventy-six days in cold storage
The Clippers sent Kawhi Leonard to Toronto on Monday, closing a trade the two clubs had agreed on June 30. Los Angeles receives Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first-round picks, a first-round pick swap and two second-round selections.
The delay had nothing to do with the basketball. The NBA froze the deal while it investigated salary cap circumvention involving Leonard and the franchise. The transaction went through a day after owner Steve Ballmer said the club would stop contesting the league’s findings and accept the punishment: a 30 million dollar fine, five forfeited first-round picks and a one-year suspension for Ballmer himself.
Leonard leaves after seven seasons and the highest-scoring year of his career.
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Ingram headlines the return
Ingram, 29, started all 77 of his appearances for Toronto last season and averaged 21.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He shot 47.7 percent from the field, 38.2 percent from three and 82 percent at the line, and earned his second All-Star selection.
The move returns him to the city where his career started. The Lakers took him second overall in 2016 before he moved on to New Orleans and then Toronto. He won Most Improved Player for the 2019-20 season and has averaged at least 20 points in each of the past seven campaigns. Across 572 games he sits at 19.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
Dick, 22, arrives with three Raptors seasons behind him. Toronto drafted him 13th out of Kansas in 2023. He averaged 6.0 points and 1.9 rebounds in 14 minutes across 76 games last season and carries career marks of 9.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 190 games, 72 of them starts.
Toronto gets its 2019 centrepiece back
Leonard averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.9 steals in 65 games last season, shooting 50.5 percent from the floor, 38.7 percent from deep and 89.2 percent from the line. He made All-NBA Second Team and collected a seventh All-Star nod.
Over 331 regular-season games as a Clipper he posted 25.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.7 steals, adding four All-Star selections and two All-Defensive honours. He leaves sixth on the franchise scoring list with 8,296 points, third in made threes with 718 and fifth in steals with 548. He also shares the club records for points in a game with 55 and for consecutive 20-point performances with 57. Toronto, meanwhile, reunites with the player who delivered its only championship.
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