The Lead

NBA Disputes Report On Kawhi Probe, Raptors Trade Still On Hold

Editor's note, 19 August 2026. An earlier version of this story stated that the NBA's investigation into the Clippers sponsorship arrangement had concluded and that Toronto had a green light to complete the Kawhi Leonard trade. Both claims were inaccurate. The league had announced no conclusion, and on 17 August the NBA said publicly that the reporting this item relied on contained significant inaccuracies and that the results would be made clear only once the investigation concludes. The trade remains on hold. The passage below has been corrected.

The NBA's investigation into an undisclosed sponsorship arrangement between Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers has not concluded. ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr., Baxter Holmes and Ramona Shelburne reported on 17 August that the league had found no evidence Steve Ballmer funneled money through team sponsors to pay Leonard in circumvention of the salary cap, based on initial findings from the outside firm running the probe. The NBA disputed that reporting the same day, saying it contained significant inaccuracies and that the results would be made clear only once the investigation concludes. Leonard's trade to Toronto remains on hold.

The trade has not yet been formally closed, and Toronto is still waiting on the league rather than on paperwork. Watch the gap between what gets reported and what the league confirms, because on this file those two have already diverged once, and the club's timeline is set by the second one.

The Rest of the Slate

MLB

MLB owners unanimously approved the sale of the Padres to an investor group led by José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones. San Diego is currently in the playoff race again, winning 17 of its last 24 games to surge into an NL wild-card position at 67-58, which means the new ownership inherits a team already positioned to make October relevant.

Canada Basketball

Kayla Alexander scored a team-high 16 points and hauled in seven rebounds as Canada's senior women's national basketball team opened the FIBA Olympic pre-qualifying tournament with a 72-57 win over Senegal, with Syla Swords and Delaney Gibb both chipping in with 13 points for Canada. That gives the program depth beyond its established core heading into the tournament's remaining games.

The Number

11-6

The Blue Jays' record over their last 17 games, a stretch that finished at 11-6 to move the Blue Jays (61-65) firmly back in the hunt for an American League wild-card position, capped by Monday's off-day. That run is the reason Toronto is still alive in the wild-card conversation instead of fading into September. The schedule eases up next, and how the Jays handle the softer slate will tell you whether that run was a real correction or a hot streak against tougher competition.

What's On Tonight

            6:30 PM ET · Toronto Tempo vs. Indiana Fever · TSN
6:40 PM ET · Blue Jays at Rays · Sportsnet
          

Top Dog — Betting Angle

The pick: Blue Jays team total over 4.5 runs. Tampa Bay's rotation has been vulnerable of late, and Toronto's lineup has found its footing during the recent surge.

“Investigations move slower than trade deadlines and nobody in Toronto controls the clock”