The Celtics’ best return in the Jaylen Brown deal may have just gotten a little more valuable.
At the center of it is the 2028 first-round pick, or swap, that Boston is most likely to receive from the Clippers. That piece already looked appealing because Los Angeles has spent the last few months moving on from James Harden, Ivica Zubac, and Kawhi Leonard, a clear sign the franchise was leaning into a rebuild and a youth movement.
Then Thursday brought a wrinkle.
The Clippers’ agreed-upon trade sending Leonard to the Raptors for Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, and draft picks will not be completed until the NBA finishes its investigation into Los Angeles. The league has been looking into whether the Clippers circumvented the salary cap by funneling money to Leonard through a company called Aspiration, and that probe has now been going on for almost a year without any public resolution.
The situation got even stranger because Leonard is now tied to a move involving the team the Clippers are accused of cheating to land him from in the first place. Once the trade was agreed to, the teams were told it could only proceed if the Raptors took on any penalties from the investigation. Toronto refused.
That leaves everything in limbo until the league makes a ruling. In the most severe scenario, Leonard’s contract could be voided, which would make him a free agent and wipe out the trade entirely. That could even open the door for Leonard to sign with Toronto outright, leaving the Clippers with none of the players or picks.
More likely, though, the punishment would be something along the lines of a major fine and the loss of draft picks or other assets. The source of the delay is still the same: both teams appear to expect the matter to be resolved relatively soon, with the trade going through afterward.
For Boston, the bigger picture is simple. There does not seem to be any realistic path where this ruling makes the Clippers better over the next two years.
If anything, Los Angeles could come out of it stripped of more assets, which would make a rebuild even harder and drag out the process. That only helps the value of the Celtics’ 2028 pick.
And with Leonard seemingly not headed back to the Clippers, Boston has little reason to worry about the team it’s betting against becoming a real problem anytime soon.
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