The Los Angeles Clippers may have found a creative way to address two unfinished pieces of their offseason at once.
Their stalled Kawhi Leonard trade with the Toronto Raptors could be expanded into a multi-team transaction that brings Denver Nuggets restricted free agent Peyton Watson to Los Angeles, NBA insider Jake Fischer reported during a Bleacher Report livestream.
“I’ve been told that is a possibility — that Los Angeles could turn the Kawhi trade into a bigger, multi-team deal where they rope that into a sign-and-trade, with Peyton Watson becoming a Los Angeles Clipper,” Fischer said. “Then zero salary would have to go back to Denver, and they could potentially reroute some draft capital from the Raptors to the Nuggets in that event.”
The framework would allow the Clippers to acquire Watson without sending matching salary to Denver. Instead, some of the draft compensation Toronto already agreed to trade for Leonard could be redirected to the Nuggets.
That would not make the deal simple. It would make an already complicated trade more useful to everyone involved — provided Leonard’s contract survives the NBA investigation that has prevented the original agreement from becoming official.
Clippers Could Add Peyton Watson
GettyPeyton Watson of the Denver Nuggets defends against Kawhi Leonard of the LA Clippers during the second quarter in Game Six of the Western Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Intuit Dome on May 01, 2025 in Inglewood, California.
The Clippers agreed to send Leonard to Toronto for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, a 2027 first-round pick swap and second-round selections in 2030 and 2033.
Watson would give Los Angeles a 23-year-old, 6-foot-8 forward capable of defending multiple positions. His age and athleticism would be particularly valuable for a Clippers roster attempting to get younger while moving on from Leonard.
Denver’s asking price has been in the range of two first-round picks or one first-rounder and a promising player, according to Fischer. Folding Watson’s sign-and-trade into the Leonard transaction could allow the Nuggets to receive draft compensation without adding salary near the second luxury-tax apron.
It would also enable the Clippers to preserve more of the return from Toronto than they might have to surrender in a separate Watson deal.
But none of those moving parts can be settled until the NBA determines whether the Clippers violated salary cap rules through Leonard’s endorsement agreement with the bankrupt sustainability company Aspiration.
The Clippers have denied wrongdoing.
NBA Investigation Holds Up Everything
Toronto paused the Leonard trade after learning it would assume the risk of any discipline affecting him.
If the league limits any punishment to a fine or the forfeiture of Clippers draft picks, Los Angeles could still attempt to complete the trade. The precise package might have to change if the NBA removes an asset involved in the transaction.
A suspension affecting Leonard would force Toronto to reconsider whether the agreed-upon cost remains acceptable. The most severe outcome, however, would be the voiding of his contract.
Under Article XIII of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, Leonard’s contract could be voided if both the player — or someone acting on his behalf — and the Clippers were found to have committed prohibited circumvention.
If that occurred before the trade closed, Leonard’s approximately $50 million salary would disappear from the transaction. The existing deal could not proceed under its present financial structure.
That uncertainty explains why a potentially beneficial three-team solution remains only a possibility. The Clippers could turn one outgoing star into Ingram, Dick, Watson and a replenished collection of draft assets.
First, they need the NBA to determine whether the contract holding the entire construction together is still valid.
Clippers Could Land Rising Forward in Expanded Kawhi Leonard Blockbuster