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LeBron James will change teams for the fourth time in his career after informing the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday that he would not be returning for a ninth season with the storied franchise.

The 41-year-old will hit the free agent market when the league’s window opens at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday and will determine where he spends his 24th season in the NBA. James will have plenty of options, as he was still tremendously productive in 2025-26, averaging 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds on 51.5/31.7/73.7 shooting splits in 60 regular-season games. He was even better in the playoffs, leading L.A. to the second round with Luka Dončić out and Austin Reaves banged up, proving he’s still got plenty in the tank.

The question is not so much who will want James as much as what teams James will be interested in — and what his asking price will be from each different suitor. James could chase any combination of money, championship opportunity and the comfort of an old home with his decision this summer. So, what are the top landing spots for James as he gets set to be wined-and-dined by suitors? Let’s explore the options from the expected to potential wild cards that could enter the mix.

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The Expendables — Golden State Warriors
It’s no secret LeBron wants to play with Steph… it’s closer than ever to happening
The least surprising move, at this point, would be for James to make the trek up the California coast to join forces with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green in San Francisco. The Warriors have been inquiring about James’ availability for at least the last two trade deadlines, and their interest in landing James this summer has been well reported. James and Curry have mused about what it’d be like to play together in the NBA after finally pairing up for USA Basketball in Paris, and now have the opportunity to in what would be a possible last chapter for the two former rivals and the defining stars of their era. With Draymond Green declining his player option, the Warriors can give James up to $15 million with the non-tax mid-level, which is more than some contenders who may try to convince James to chase a title on a minimum or near-minimum deal.

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LeBron and Steph were golden as teammates at the 2024 Olympics. Will they be teammates in Golden State? Getty Images
The big question for the Warriors is whether they’ll also add a serious pursuit of Anthony Davis to bring him to the Bay alongside James, or if they’ll keep Jimmy Butler in hopes he can return from his torn ACL to assist in a late postseason run. Trading for Davis is reportedly not a requirement for the Warriors to land James, per Marc Stein, and after re-signing Kristaps Porziņģis and Al Horford, they have already ensured their frontcourt depth is solidified with or without Davis.

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The Homecoming (again) — Cleveland Cavaliers
Ten years after leading the Cavs to their only title, would LeBron go home to try to win another?
Many have speculated for years that James will eventually go home one more time and end his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s already gone home once, returning to Cleveland after his stint with Miami to deliver the Cavs their first championship, and with the Cavs once again falling short in the Eastern Conference Finals, it would be poetic for James to return to try and push them over the edge one more time.

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LeBron played for the Cavs in 2007 and 2017… so what about 2027? Getty Images
There is reportedly interest on the Cavs side to opening the door for another homecoming, per NBA on Prime’s Chris Haynes, but the financial situation is tricky. A sign-and-trade would hard cap the Cavaliers at the first apron. Even if they worked something out to send Jarrett Allen to the Lakers to help fill their center void and LeBron took a good bit less than what Allen makes, it would still make it extremely difficult for them to re-sign James Harden at the number he’s likely looking for and fill out the roster. The only other option is for James to return home on a minimum deal, which is considerably less than what Golden State and others could offer.

The heart wants what the heart wants, and if James wants the storybook ending back home in Cleveland, he can make that happen. James certainly doesn’t need another eight-figure salary at this point in his career, but it would still be quite the sacrifice given the other opportunities that will be out there for him to take a minimum to return home.

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Talents back to South Beach — Miami Heat
A LeBron Big 3 in Miami? We’ve seen this movie before
While we’re talking about returning to familiar homes, Pat Riley and the Heat will surely make a call to James to gauge his interest in returning to South Beach and forming a new Big 3 with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo. Like with the Cavs, Miami would need LeBron to take less than the Warriors can offer — barring a surprise sign-and-trade involving Andrew Wiggins’ $30 million deal. It’s hard to imagine James would prefer playing with Antetokounmpo and Adebayo — where the fit is questionable and he doesn’t have deep personal ties to either — over the Warriors opportunity with Curry and Green, whom he is close friends with.

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More than a decade after LeBron left, Erik Spoelstra (and Pat Riley) are still in Miami. Getty Images
His connections are instead with Riley and Erik Spoelstra, who will almost certainly make an overture to see if he wants to make one more run in the sun.

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The King and The Alien — San Antonio Spurs
Teaming the 41-year-old James up with the 22-year-old Wemby could make the Spurs title favorites
If we’re talking about teams that can pay LeBron more than the minimum and offer him a chance to win another title, there’s probably not a better landing spot from a sheer basketball perspective than the San Antonio Spurs. James could team up with Victor Wembanyama and help show the young star the ropes of how to navigate life as the league’s preeminent force and try to help the Spurs and Wembanyama capture a championship after their run to the Finals in 2025-26.

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Wemby could be the heir apparent to LeBron as the ‘face of the NBA.’ Getty Images
They have access to the non-tax mid-level and can give James the same kind of $15 million deal the Warriors can, and there’s no question they’re in a better position to win a title right now than Golden State. James would be able to play a secondary — but still vital — role, with the defensive pressure on him alleviated by Wembanyama (and the rest of the roster, really) while providing the Spurs with a much-needed on-ball creator on offense. It seems unlikely James will pick this route, but from a purely basketball perspective, there isn’t a better place for him at this point in his career.

LeBron James will not be returning to the Los Angeles Lakers, his agent, Rich Paul, told ESPN on Tuesday. James will be a free agent at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, and has told the Lakers he intends to sign elsewhere after spending the last eight seasons in L.A. James led the Lakers to the 2020 NBA title in the league’s Orlando bubble and became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer while wearing a Lakers uniform in 2023. Paul also confirmed to ESPN that James will return to play in 2026-27 for an NBA record 24th season in the league.

The Warriors, who have been linked to James for the last few days, appear to be the frontrunners for the 41-year-old’s services in the 2026-27 season. The Warriors are reportedly trying to land James in free agency and Anthony Davis in a trade and reunite the title-winning teammates with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green in Golden State. Chris Haynes also reports that the Cavaliers are interested in bringing James back for a third stint in Cleveland.

“LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes in history,” Lakers president Jeanie Buss said in a statement. “We will always be thankful for his eight years with the Lakers — including the title he led us to in 2020 under the toughest imaginable circumstances and the countless records he broke in purple and gold. We wish him all the best in the future, both on the court and off. He will always be a cherished part of the Lakers family.”

James responded to the Lakers’ statement, saying it was “truly a honor” to play for the franchise.

No, THANK YOU! Truly a honor to wear the 💜💛 while trying to continuing the greatness & legacies that came before me! Hope I made a few proud during my stint. 🙏🏾🫡👑 https://t.co/RmQ6uvvgv0

— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 30, 2026
James, who led the Lakers to the 2020 NBA title, was technically an unrestricted free agent in 2024, but this is the first offseason that he will change teams since he joined the Lakers in 2018. When James picked up his player option last offseason, he released a statement that indicated he was not fully satisfied with how the Lakers were operating.

“LeBron wants to compete for a championship,” his agent, Rich Paul, told ESPN at the time. “He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we’ve had for eight years with Jeanie (Buss) and Rob (Pelinka) and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.”

The Lakers acquired Luka Dončić at the 2025 trade deadline, a stunning blockbuster that forced them to reconsider the timeline that they prioritized in building their roster. Dončić and Austin Reaves were suddenly the priorities, pushing James down the organizational pecking order. When he returned from a bout with sciatica early in the season, he was, for the first time in his career, the No. 3 option for his team offensively.

Yet James made the most of it. He settled in and thrived in his new role, and the Lakers ultimately went 15-2 in March with the James-Dončić-Reaves trio on a heater. Any championship hopes the Lakers might have harbored were ultimately dashed when Dončić and Reaves suffered a pair of late-season injuries that kept the former out for the whole postseason and the latter out for part of it. James still led the Lakers to a first-round upset over the Houston Rockets, but they were swept in the second round by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

James now becomes an unusual free agent. He is coming off a near-max contact, and he is arguably the greatest player in NBA history. He isn’t nearly that valuable anymore, but he remains a very high-level player capable of leading a team through a first-round series and probably supporting a better one deeper into the playoffs. Someone of his stature would surely expect a pretty hefty salary, but cap space is minimal on this market.

Unless you were under a rock on Monday, you know by now that the Golden State Warriors are making a real run at LeBron James and Anthony Davis — a coup keeps becoming more plausible, if not probable. First, on Monday, Draymond Green declined his $27.7 million player option for the 2026-27 season. Then, on Tuesday, James told the Lakers that he’s not coming back and will instead land elsewhere in free agency. Immediately, the Warriors were viewed as the frontrunners for LeBron.

So why is the Green contract decision important? Because now Green can sign a contract that pays him more over the long term but less than the $27 million annually, with any savings able to be redirected to LeBron as they aim to get him at a $15 million annual number to fit into the non-taxpayer midlevel exception slot.

It’s a tight fit because to pay out the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, your total team salary cannot exceed the first-apron line, so when news broke that the Warriors re-signed Kristaps Porziņģis to a two-year, $40 million deal, it became a question of whether Golden State could make the math work.

The answer is yes … with a possible Moses Moody caveat.

How the Warriors can create money for LeBron and Draymond
As noted by salary-cap guru Yossi Goslan, who hosts the Third Apron podcast with CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn, the Warriors are currently $32.5 million beneath the first apron with $176.5 million devoted to the following 10 players: Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Porziņģis, Al Horford, Moses Moody, Brandon Podziemski, Gui Santos, Will Richard, first-round pick Yaxel Lendeborg and second-round pick Lajae Jones.

You have to roster a minimum of 14 players, meaning the Warriors would have to add four more players for less than that $32.5M number. So let’s do some math. Let’s say the Warriors give LeBron the $15.1 million NTMLE. That’s 11 players with $17.4 million left to pay Green and two more veteran-minimum deals at $2.4M each. So Green takes a little over $12 million in the first year with the max 8% increases — let’s say a three-year deal for around $40 million, just for argument’s sake — and the math works.

Would Green accept that low a salary? Maybe. But he wouldn’t have to if the Warriors moved off some other money. Which is where Moody comes in. Moody is on the books for $12.5 million next season, which he isn’t likely to participate in as he recovers from a horrific knee injury. That money could be absorbed into someone else’s midlevel exception or cap space, or the Warriors could trade for a less expensive player with each dollar saved able to be routed to Green.

If the Warriors incentivized a team to take Moody into their space by attaching a future draft pick, his full $12.5M goes off the books and could be replaced by a vet minimum to fill the roster spot. That’s north of $10M extra the Warriors would have to give to Green or split between him and James.

But wait, that doesn’t include Anthony Davis. How do they get him? From a money standpoint, that part’s easy. They trade Jimmy Butler’s $56.8 million next season for Davis’ $58.5 million. The Warriors would have to absorb the extra $1.5 million on Davis’ deal, and that would count toward this final number they’re trying to stay under, so in the event of a Moody trade they would now have about $8.5 million more to give Green in the first year.

That would take him up near $20 million annually, the same deal that Porziņģis just got. That seems reasonable, but again it would necessitate trading Moody without taking the same, or preferably any, money back. It’s not a huge task if the Warriors will attach a pick. Then they attach more picks to get Davis. And they sign LeBron into the NTMLE, and we’ve got a deal.

So… will it happen?
Obviously, it won’t be as easy as that sounds, but there are a lot of ways to skin this cat. Hell, LeBron could just say I’ll play for $10 million next season if Draymond wants a little more, or they could give either one of them a low first-year salary with a player option in Year 2 that they can opt out next summer and then potentially re-sign for more.

The point is, the math on the Warriors pulling off this LeBron-AD coup is still very much viable. It’s a little bit trickier after the Porziņģis deal, but if you think the Warriors aren’t well aware of the number it would take to re-sign Green and still have a satisfactory amount left for LeBron, and didn’t factor that in before they handed that deal to Porziņģis, you’re wrong.

Everyone with a card in this hand knows pretty much exactly what it would take to make this work, and if they didn’t think it could happen, Green wouldn’t have opted out, and the Warriors would not have signed Porziņģis yet.

LeBron James is taking his talents elsewhere, so the Los Angeles Lakers’ mandate this offseason is straightforward: Build around Luka Dončić.

The Lakers have already secured a co-star for Dončić. Austin Reaves agreed to a four-year max contract last week. Beyond Dončić and Reaves, though, they have seven players on the roster — Jake LaRavia, Jarred Vanderbilt, Deandre Ayton, Dalton Knecht, Bronny James, Adou Thiero and rookie Cameron Carr — and Los Angeles might not see any of them as a long-term starter.

This means that, with $52 million of cap space at their disposal (accounting for Reaves’ cap hold and nobody else’s), the Lakers could target just about anybody in free agency and on the trade market. Naturally, they will be more interested in players who are in or approaching their prime years and can complement ball-dominant playmakers.

One big question: Can they find Dončić a pick-and-roll partner? A source close to Dončić told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that Dončić’s “first and foremost desire is an A-list center.”

LeBron James landing spots: Four teams that make sense as The King leaves the Lakers
Robby Kalland
LeBron James landing spots: Four teams that make sense as The King leaves the Lakers
Los Angeles is scheduled to talk to restricted free agent Jalen Duren on Tuesday, according to The Athletic’s Sam Amick. Duren was an All-Star and made the All-NBA Third Team this past season, and he doesn’t even turn 23 until November. Guys like this are typically not available, but, after Duren’s poor offensive showing in the playoffs — in which opposing defenses flagrantly ignored the Detroit Pistons’ perimeter players and took away his rolls to the rim — maybe the Lakers have an opportunity.

They cannot get Duren, however, without Detroit’s cooperation. If he signs an offer sheet from Los Angeles, the Pistons can simply match it and retain him. And the Pistons have shown no interest in a sign-and-trade, according to ESPN.

Dončić is a fan of Duren’s game, according to The Athletic. To acquire him, though, they’ll need to offer him a contract Detroit won’t match or a trade it won’t turn down. It’s not clear how realistic either scenario is.

Restricted free agents rarely change teams. Los Angeles, however, is reportedly interested in two RFA centers. It is expected to meet with Walker Kessler on Tuesday, according to The Stein Line’s Marc Stein and Jake Fischer.

Kessler turns 25 next month. He played just five games for the Utah Jazz last season before having season-ending shoulder surgery, but is one of the league’s best rim protectors when healthy. He would be a killer lob threat next to Dončić, but he is not in the same class as Duren when it comes to scoring and short-roll playmaking.

Two weeks ago, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported that the Jazz had offered Kessler a five-year, $140 million contract, but he was looking for more. The dynamic here is more or less the same as the Duren situation: The team is offering less than the RFA wants, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the team is willing to let the RFA go. It is notable, though, that Utah agreed to a deal with another center on Monday: Jusuf Nurkic is coming back on a two-year, $22 million contract.

The Lakers are also interested in Mitchell Robinson, per The Stein Line. Robinson just won a title with the New York Knicks, but he might be on his way out because owner James Dolan wants the champs to stay below the second apron.

If he can stay healthy, the 28-year-old Robinson would make a ton of sense with the Lakers. At his best, he’s a game-changing offensive rebounder, a top-tier rim protector and exactly the kind of player who would feast off of lobs from Dončić. Los Angeles could live with his terrible free-throw shooting because of everything else he brings to the table.

Durability, though, is a real question. If the Lakers envision Robinson playing more than 20ish minutes a night, how confident are they that they can keep him on the court?

Los Angeles is also interested in Sandro Mamukelashvili, according to The Stein Line. Mamukelashvili, 27, is nominally a big man, but he’s not a shot blocker and not a lob threat. If the Lakers sign him, it will be to give the team a different look. He’s a skilled big who can stretch the floor, serve as an offensive hub and create off the bounce.

Last season with the Toronto Raptors, Mamukelashvili was one of the league’s most productive reserves. He played far more minutes than he did in any prior season, was more efficient than ever before and made 38.9% of his 3-point attempts.

Los Angeles could also bring back center Jaxson Hayes, who recently became a Slovenian citizen.

I wouldn’t call Dean Wade a center, but he can slide up to that position in small-ball lineups and, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Lakers will be one of his suitors in free agency. Wade has lasted seven years in Cleveland largely because of his defensive versatility, a clear area of need for Los Angeles.

Other non-bigs that the Lakers have reportedly looked at include the Denver Nuggets’ Cam Johnson (per HoopsHype), restricted free agent Tari Eason (per Yahoo Sports’ Kelly Iko), free agent Quentin Grimes (per The Stein Line) and free agent Ziaire Williams (per The Athletic’s Dan Woike). Johnson, like almost everybody else in Denver, is a trade candidate. In theory, the front office could also throw an offer sheet at restricted free agent Peyton Watson and/or go after other UFAs — Kelly Oubre Jr. and De’Anthony Melton seem like sensible targets.

And then there are the other familiar faces. Yes, the Lakers are looking for upgrades, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t re-sign Rui Hachimura and/or Luke Kennard. The same is technically true for Marcus Smart, who declined his $5.4 million player option, but multiple outlets have already linked Smart to the Houston Rockets.

Los Angeles has the cap space to make a big splash to begin the post-LeBron era. Free agency, however, is not what it used to be, with stars now tending to sign extensions and change teams via trade. There is an argument, then, that they’d be better off trying to hit singles than taking a big swing at someone like Duren or Watson. Given the money they’ve committed to Dončić and Reaves, though, it’ll be a long while before they have this much financial flexibility again.

LeBron James’ tenure with the Los Angeles Lakers came to an end Tuesday, hours before the start of free agency, when he told the team he would sign elsewhere this summer. James, who signed with the Lakers in 2018, spent eight seasons with the historic franchise — longer than his first stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers — and led them to the 2020 NBA title.

“LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes in history. We will always be thankful for his eight years with the Lakers — including the title he led us to in 2020 under the toughest imaginable circumstances and the countless records he broke in purple and gold,” Lakers governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement. “We wish him all the best in the future, both on the court and off. He will always be a cherished part of the Lakers family.”

James, 41, will begin his historic 24th season in a different jersey, though perhaps not a new one. Both the Cavaliers and Miami Heat will be in the mix to sign James, as will the Golden State Warriors, who appear to be the favorites. Earlier this week, our experts predicted where James will play next season. But where do they want him to play?

As James prepares for his latest decision, here are the teams our experts think would be most fun as landing spots:

Favorite landing spots for LeBron James

Maloney: LeBron is not going to sign with the Nuggets, but this is not a predictions post. If I could place James anywhere, it would be Denver for the simple reason that I would love to see what it would look like with James and Nikola Jokić — two of the smartest basketball players who have ever lived — on the same team. It wouldn’t be a perfect fit, in large part because they’re both at their best when they’re running the show, but that would only make it more interesting. How would two of the game’s best problem solvers figure out how to play together? At the very least, some of the highlights we’d get from James cutting baseline or running in transition off Jokic’s passes would be incredible. And best-case scenario, James would give the Nuggets a real chance to compete with the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference.

How much can your NBA team pay LeBron James next season? Complete cap salary guide with The King on the move
Sam Quinn
How much can your NBA team pay LeBron James next season? Complete cap salary guide with The King on the move
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Golden State Warriors
Gonzalez: LeBron and Steph Curry teaming up is the giant what-if basketball fans have been fantasizing about forever — and now it’s close to becoming a reality. We got a little taste of it during the Olympics, but that appetizer wasn’t quite enough to satiate the hunger for more. LeBron will be 42 in December. Steph will turn 38 in March. I’d love for them to play well into their mid-to-late 40s and do the old-guys-at-the-Y routine, but that seems unlikely. Which is why we need this to happen sooner rather than later, because later is coming up at breakneck speed, and they’ll both be gone before we know it. Before that happens, let’s have one season of them joining forces — at least.

Salerno: The duo of Curry and James would be box office. We saw how dynamic those players are together at the Olympics a few years ago. It would pair two of the most impactful players of this generation together. It’s a rare opportunity any casual fan would want to see. Steph and LeBron deserve to end their respective careers on a high note. Now, are the Warriors title contenders with that duo? Maybe. They wouldn’t be better than OKC or San Antonio, but having Steph and LeBron together and healthy would at least give you a chance in any playoff series.

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San Antonio Spurs
Kalland: There is one person in the league who truly understands what Victor Wembanyama is going through right now: LeBron James. He could go to San Antonio and take on a mentorship role for the next face of the league while also contributing in a much-needed on-court role for a championship contender. Seeing LeBron and Wemby together wouldn’t just be incredible to watch, but it would make the Spurs the outright title favorites next year. We saw this past postseason that the Spurs desperately need a steady-handed creator for late-game situations, and LeBron would fill that hole in their roster perfectly. James has reportedly said he’ll make this decision based on happiness. That likely points him toward Cleveland or Golden State, but I’d argue that nothing has ever made LeBron James happier as a basketball player than winning. The best place to do that is in San Antonio, with the added bonus of getting access to Gregg Popovich’s wine cellar.

The Los Angeles Clippers are trading Kawhi Leonard back to the Toronto Raptors, according to ESPN. The deal sends Leonard to the team with whom he won the 2019 championship and Finals MVP. That summer, he left Toronto to sign a free-agent deal with the Clippers. Now, seven years later, the Raptors are bringing the most talented player in franchise history back to Canada in one of the biggest trades of the offseason.

The return package for the Clippers includes Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, a pick swap in 2027 and two second-rounders (2030 and 2033), per ESPN.

The Leonard era in Los Angeles included some of the highest highs in franchise history, but ultimately ended in disappointment. After trading Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a historic package of draft picks to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Paul George in order to secure Leonard’s commitment, the Clippers only reached one Western Conference Finals with Leonard on the team. That was the first conference finals appearance in team history, but Leonard missed that series after tearing his ACL in the prior round against the Utah Jazz.

Meanwhile, the NBA is investigating whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap through a sponsorship agreement between Leonard and Aspiration to direct more money to Leonard. That investigation has been ongoing since last offseason. The Clippers have maintained their innocence since the allegations, brought to light by reporter Pablo Torre, came to light.

LeBron James landing spots: Four teams that make sense as The King leaves the Lakers
Robby Kalland
LeBron James landing spots: Four teams that make sense as The King leaves the Lakers
After years of injuries, Leonard has bounced back over the past two seasons to return to All-NBA form. Yet as the Clippers traded James Harden and Ivica Zubac at the deadline to launch a youth movement, a Leonard deal eventually seemed inevitable. However, with Leonard on an expiring contract, he had control over his possible destinations. After all, the whole league saw him leave Toronto the first time despite winning a championship. In fact, Leonard was reportedly only interested in signing an extension with his two former teams: the Raptors and the San Antonio Spurs.

Toronto has rebuilt its team entirely since Leonard last played there. No players from the 2019 championship team remain on the roster, and both top executive Masai Ujiri and coach Nick Nurse are gone as well. But current Raptors general manager Bobby Webster was part of the front office that built those 2019 champions, and last year, he put together a roster that had a surprisingly successful season.

The Raptors won 46 games, earning the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference behind a breakout season from Scottie Barnes, who made his second All-Star appearance. Despite playing the first round of the playoffs with several significant injuries, the Raptors managed to push the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games in a near-upset. With Barnes ascending to true stardom, the Raptors decided to push to get back into genuine Eastern Conference contention. So let’s grade this trade for both sides:

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Toronto Raptors: C+
Toronto adds star to pair with Scottie Barnes — but at a significant risk and cost
When the Raptors traded for Ingram at the 2025 trade deadline, they seemingly did so knowing that Scottie Barnes is an incredible all-around player whose biggest shortcoming would be clutch scoring. Ingram was supposed to be their late-game shot maker, and for most of last season, he was.

But he was overmatched in the playoffs before he got hurt. Even without him and Immanuel Quickley, Barnes thrived. He pushed the Cavaliers to seven games in the first round while functioning as the point guard. That series showed Toronto that Barnes is ready for a higher level of contention. He just needed the right co-star.

The Raptors wanted a half-court shot maker. Leonard is an apex half-court shot maker. There will be a bit of positional overlap since Barnes last season started taking more of the mid-range shots that Leonard prefers. But that’s a solvable problem considering how well Leonard can shoot from deep. Leonard needed to play with a younger star who could keep him fresh across the 82-game grind. Barnes needed to play with an end-of-game killer who could carry his team across the finish line in the closing minutes. In that respect, they both got exactly what they needed. The Raptors generated the fourth-most fast-break points in the NBA last season. If they maintain their turnover generation and willingness to run while adding Leonard’s half-court brilliance, their offense has a chance to be very, very good.

Leonard is not the same level of 48-minute defender that he was when he won Defensive Player of the Year, or even when he was last a Raptor. But, again, he won’t need to be. Toronto has great defenders everywhere. The trio of Barnes, Leonard and Collin Murray-Boyles is among the best defensive frontcourts any team can put on the floor this season. Jamal Shead is tiny, but a ferocious point-of-attack defender. Ja’Kobe Walter falls between Shead and the big wings: not quite imposing enough for the strongest forwards and centers, but a headache for most guards he encounters.

Toronto should be among the very best defenses in the NBA. The Raptors ranked fifth last season, and that was with Ingram in Leonard’s place and Murray-Boyles still finding his footing as a rookie. Now they are not only loaded with talent, but also with versatility. They genuinely have enough wing defense and size to switch every screen if they want.

You could make a compelling case that the Raptors are now the Eastern Conference’s second-best team. The Boston Celtics are in a state of flux with Jaylen Brown on the trade block. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavaliers got absolutely waxed by the New York Knicks — as did almost everyone else. We’ll see how Tyrese Haliburton looks as he returns to the Indiana Pacers following his torn Achilles. The Miami Heat are trying to build around Giannis Antetokounmpo with minimal resources. The Detroit Pistons are still looking for a secondary scorer.

On paper, the Raptors probably have the most balanced roster of any of them. They pose a far more severe threat to New York than anyone in the East did last year… if they can stay healthy.

Raptors taking major risk at hefty price
The immediate questions here are medical. Toronto, led by the highly regarded vice president of player health and performance, Alex McKechnie, did an excellent job of keeping Leonard healthy during the 2018-19 season. He’s much older now, and the Raptors just made a significant investment in him moving forward. Leonard is eligible for a contract extension, and reports have indicated that Toronto was the only team he was willing to sign with. A big extension could go poorly, given Leonard’s age and history of injuries. It’s hard to imagine the NBA allowing this trade to go through if the results of its investigation into Aspiration could affect Leonard’s status with the Raptors, but it is worth noting that the investigation is still technically ongoing in the background here. We don’t know what its findings could mean for Leonard.

Now we have to address the compensation. In a vacuum, two first-round picks and a swap are a reasonable price for someone as accomplished as Leonard. What matters here is which first-round picks Toronto gave up: a 2027 first-round swap that’s non-trivial considering the swap rights the Clippers owe to the Thunder… and unprotected picks in 2031 and 2033.

In the NBA right now, there are effectively two classes of first-round picks. There are picks covered by lottery reform that come between 2027 and 2029, and then there are picks slated to convey after that. In the simplest terms, we do not know what the lottery rules will be in 2030 and beyond. The lottery reform the NBA recently adopted lasts only through 2029. The rules could change in ways that could be enormously advantageous for these picks. Miami is the only other team to trade multiple picks in the 2030s this offseason, but did so for a 31-year-old Antetokounmpo.

Leonard is four years older and has a more extensive injury history. It is at the very least improbable that he remains in Toronto when these unprotected picks eventually convey, and if he’s still there, he’ll be a different player. Now, Barnes, 24, and Murray-Boyles, 21, are young. If they’re still in place, the Raptors should remain competitive. But the NBA is a cruel and random league, and no team can just assume it’s going to be great five and seven years down the line.

Perhaps more importantly, giving up these picks now costs Toronto the liquidity it might need to build a team around Barnes and Murray-Boyles later. Even if Leonard is great for a few years, who is going to be the scoring star the Raptors pursue when he ages out of his own stardom? Lacking those 2030s picks will make it harder for Toronto to find that player if it needs to.

The Los Angeles Clippers have agreed to trade Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors, per ESPN. The deal would send Leonard back to Toronto, where he spent one season and led the Raptors to the 2019 championship — something he was never able to accomplish during a disappointing seven-year tenure in Los Angeles.

In the end, Leonard’s time with the Clippers will be remembered for his dramatic arrival, a parade of injuries, a lack of playoff success and a bizarre investigation. He missed the entire 2021-22 season with a torn ACL, played in 331 of a possible 554 regular-season games, won three playoff series and never appeared in a game beyond the second round. (The Clippers made the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history in 2021 after Leonard tore his ACL in the second round.)

Though Leonard is no longer with the team, the Clippers remain under investigation by the league for allegedly circumventing the salary cap by using a no-show endorsement deal with Aspiration, a now-bankrupt sustainability company, to funnel money to Leonard. Both Leonard and Dennis Robertson — Leonard’s uncle and advisor — have been interviewed as part of the league’s investigation.

The Leonard era in Los Angeles won’t be fully complete until the league closes its investigation, but the on-court aspect has now ended, so let’s take a look back at the seven-time All-Star’s time with the Clippers.

Kawhi Leonard trade grades: Clippers get ‘A+’ for franchise-altering pivot as Raptors take major risk
Sam Quinn
Kawhi Leonard trade grades: Clippers get ‘A+’ for franchise-altering pivot as Raptors take major risk
A foreboding late-night arrival
In the summer of 2019, immediately after he led the Raptors to the first title in franchise history, Leonard was able to make a real case as the best player in the world. At the time, he was the most sought-after free agent during a star-studded summer that also saw Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Jimmy Butler change teams.

While Durant and Irving quickly agreed to deals with the Brooklyn Nets, and Butler went to the Miami Heat in a sign-and-trade deal a few days later, Leonard bided his time. The Raptors and Los Angeles Lakers both thought they had a real chance to sign Leonard, but he eventually settled on the Clippers — though not until after they had agreed to acquire Paul George in exchange for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Danilo Gallinari, five first-round picks (four unprotected) and two first-round pick swaps.

Late on July 5, 2019, (or extremely early on July 6, depending on your location), the deal(s) were finally done. They came in conjunction just hours after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Ridgecrest, California. The most powerful earthquake to hit Southern California in nearly 20 years could be felt as far away as Las Vegas, where multiple NBA Summer League games were canceled.

“I’m just fired up to be here today. Pretty cool, pretty damn cool,” an emphatic Clippers owner Steve Ballmer said, before screaming into the microphone a few weeks later at Leonard and George’s introductory press conference. “… Being number two, being number four. We’re only here for one reason. We want to win it all.”

“We’ve got something special,” Leonard said. “We can make history here, and we’ve got the right team to do it.”

Injuries, injuries and more injuries
In his Clippers debut on Oct. 22, 2019, Leonard went off for 30 points, six rebounds and five assists in a win over LeBron James and the Lakers. Eight days later, he was absent for the team’s fifth game of the season, a loss to the Utah Jazz, due to load management for his left knee.

Usually, the NBA’s free agent frenzy comes and goes in a blink. The opening bell rings on June 30th and the best players are all settled in the next few hours and days.

But things are off to a slower start in 2026, no doubt in part because of the surprising availability of LeBron James and several notable restricted free agents dictating how teams want to allocate their money. A number of free agents re-signed with their teams between the end of the Finals and the beginning of free agency, but the first night was relatively slow when it came to big moves.

But even if free agency is taking its time, a number of meaningful moves came on Tuesday — the blockbuster trade of Kawhi Leonard in particular — along with news of James’ free agency. So let’s pick some winners and losers from all of Tuesday’s movement.

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Loser: Los Angeles Lakers
Hours before free agency was set to officially begin, James let the Lakers know that he would not re-sign with the franchise, ending his eight-year tenure in Los Angeles.

“Truly an honor to wear the [purple and gold] while trying to continue the greatness & legacies that came before me! Hope I made a few proud during my stint,” James wrote on social media after the team announced his departure.

While you could make the case that the Lakers will be better off in the long run by turning the team over to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, they still have to be considered losers from the first day of free agency. I mean, come on, LeBron James is walking out the door.

Even at 41 and entering a historic 24th season, James remains a top 20-25 player in the league. Last season, he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists, and was one of 10 players to average 20/5/5. He’s also still one of the most popular athletes alive and provides a major economic boost to whichever team he’s on. Even the Lakers will suffer on that front without him. — Jack Maloney

No, THANK YOU! Truly a honor to wear the 💜💛 while trying to continuing the greatness & legacies that came before me! Hope I made a few proud during my stint. 🙏🏾🫡👑 https://t.co/RmQ6uvvgv0

— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 30, 2026