New Kawhi Leonard Rumors on Raptors Future, Contract Talks amid Reported Clippers Trade

The Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly nearing a trade that would send Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors, per ESPN's Shams Charania.

Per Charania, Leonard reportedly sees himself finishing his career in Toronto, where he led the Raptors to the 2018-19 NBA championship. He is eligible to sign a two-year, $123.7 million extension with Toronto, per ESPN's Bobby Marks.

Leonard is entering the final year of a three-year, $149.5 million contract that will pay him $50.3 million in 2026-27. He's currently set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2027. The possible two-year extension would take him through the 2028-29 season.

Leonard, who just turned 35 years old on Monday, averaged a career-high 27.9 points on 50.5 percent shooting (38.7 percent from three-point range), 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists for the Clippers. He landed on the All-NBA Second Team and finished seventh in the MVP voting.

Now he appears headed back to Toronto, where he'll team up with a talented and young roster that just made the first round of the playoffs following a 46-win season and took the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games before losing in the final matchup.

Adding Leonard could be a massive win for the franchise as they look to take the next step and make a deeper playoff run. He found great success in his lone year in Toronto and could very well do so again.

The Raptors did pay a big price, with 28-year-old Brandon Ingram (21.5 PPG, 5.6 RPG) notably heading to L.A., but adding Leonard for potentially three seasons puts Toronto in position to be a strong Eastern Conference contender.