Steve Ballmer did what he needed to do, issuing a statement saying that he will comply with the league's punishment for the LA Clippers' role in the salary cap-circumvention case. It's a step forward for the organization, one that should take them closer to completing the Kawhi Leonard trade, but as Jake Fischer said, it doesn't mean the deal will be finalized soon.
I would not read Steve Ballmer accepting the NBA’s investigation findings and penalties as any indicator the trade of Kawhi Leonard to the Raptors will be completed imminently.
— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) September 14, 2026
Still sounds like the Clippers’ aren’t quite ready to get back on the phone with Toronto, even… https://t.co/jqPhr9n522
The Clippers' front-office structure looks much different now, with Ballmer (one year), Gillian Zucker (one year), and Lawrence Frank (six months) all suspended. LA could use that to justify not moving forward with the trade yet, but as Marc Stein reported on Friday, both teams are "free" to get the league's official stamp of approval on the deal they agreed to in June.
UPDATE: Sources briefed on the situation tell @TheSteinLine that the Clippers and Raptors are free at any time to co-submit for NBA approval their agreed-in-June Kawhi Leonard trade.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) September 11, 2026
Obviously both teams must want the trade call but I’m told there is no holdup at league level. https://t.co/FMqZO4fPdq
So, what's the hold up?
Good question.
Kawhi Leonard trade hold-up is on the Clippers' end
Toronto agreed to send Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two unprotected first-round picks, two first-round pick swaps, and a second-round pick to LA for Leonard.
From the Clippers' perspective, now that the investigation's results are official, they should take and run before the Raptors can think twice. Not that Toronto hasn't had plenty of time to do so already, as two and a half months have passed since it was first reported. But especially now, with the league docking five first-round picks from LA, the trade is even more important.
Ballmer standing down, rather than fighting back, as he originally said he would, knocks a hurdle out of the way for the Clippers. Or at least, it should. Fischer didn't specifically say why LA isn't ready to pick up the phone and call Toronto to make the trade official.
Could it be that the Clippers feel slighted by Leonard, who got away with a $700,000 fine, which is nothing compared to the millions he received as part of his no-show sponsorship deals?
Granted, it doesn't make much sense that Kawhi, who was at the center of this mess, gets to walk away relatively unscathed on the basis that he wasn't aware of what was going on. You can think what you want about that. The point remains that this trade will help put the Clippers on the path they need to create what will hopefully be a better future. Pettiness shouldn't get in the way of that.
For the past couple of months, the belief has been that the trade will eventually go through, and as Sam Amick and Matt Schubert of The Athletic reported on Sunday, that's still true (subscription required). They added that "a league source close to Leonard" believes that the trade could become official "in the coming days."
It will be nice when LA's actions match those words, and Leonard goes to the Raptors, sending the Clippers draft assets that carry more weight now than they did in June, when the deal was first reported.
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