Raptors, Kawhi Leonard Agree To Two-Year Extension

The deal will go into effect in 2027/28 after Leonard earns $50.3MM in ’26/27. It will include a player option for the ’28/29 season, according to Charania.

Although the completion of the Raptors’ trade for Leonard was delayed until last Monday, the two sides “maintained consistent dialogue” throughout the offseason, Charania tweets, adding that the 35-year-old expects to finish his career in Toronto.

Leonard, who returns to the Raptors seven years after leading the team to its first and only NBA championship, is coming off one of the best seasons of his 15-year NBA career. In 65 games for the Clippers last season, the L.A. native averaged 27.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.9 steals in 32.1 minutes per game with a shooting line of .505/.387/.892. He finished seventh in MVP voting and made the All-NBA second team.

However, the Clippers signaled by trading Ivica Zubac and James Harden at last season’s deadline that they were in retooling mode, and Leonard reportedly pushed for a trade this offseason when it became clear that the team wasn’t going to give him the extension he was seeking. Toronto was said to be a preferred landing spot for Kawhi, in part because of his familiarity with the team and the city — and in part because the Raptors’ front office was prepared to extend him.

The Clippers and Raptors agreed to terms on a deal on June 30, but the trade was put on hold a few days later as the teams awaited the outcome of the NBA’s investigation into whether L.A. circumvented the salary cap to pay Leonard via no-show endorsement deals.

The NBA announced the results of that probe earlier this month, and while the league came down hard on the Clippers for violating cap circumvention rules, Leonard didn’t face a suspension or have his contract voided, so Toronto moved forward with the trade. A report last Thursday indicated that Kawhi and the Raptors were in advanced discussions on an extension.

The Over-38 rule meant Leonard couldn’t sign an extension longer than two years, and extend-and-trade restrictions limited him to a 20% raise for the first year of a new contract and a 5% raise for year two. That means his maximum extension at this point would’ve been worth about $124MM over two years. Kawhi’s actual deal will come in about $9MM below that. He also waived a trade kicker worth approximately $7.5MM as part of the deal sending him from L.A. to Toronto.

While we don’t know precisely what Leonard’s starting salary will be, his extension figures to push the Raptors’ cap commitments for 2027/28 up to about $178MM for seven players. That figure doesn’t take into account contracts for projected rotation players like RJ Barrett and Jamal Shead, who are on expiring deals. Next season’s salary cap is projected to come in at $176MM.