Kawhi Leonard's Availability for Raptors More Critical This Time
Eight years ago, when then-Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri made the decision to trade franchise lynchpin DeMar DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard, the expectations for the franchise quickly shifted from hoping to once again be an Eastern Conference contender - the team lost in the conference finals in 2016 and conference semifinals in 2017 and 2018 - to being a championship contender. It was the first time in history that the team had such expectations. As great as Vince Carter was when he elevated the sport nationwide and ran amok on the NBA as a tantalizing young superstar in the late 1990s and into the early 2000s, the Raptors teams then were not good enough to reach the Finals. And as good as Chris Bosh was in his run from 2004-10, his surrounding talent was not good enough.
So with Leonard in 2018-19, the Raptors had a talented, veteran roster that followed the 27-year-old’s lead. He upped his production in the playoffs - 30.5 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.7 steals - with a shot to send the Raptors to the conference finals that will be remembered as one of the most spectacular in league history, and a Finals run that galvanized a nation.
Seven years after that run, Leonard, who had left for Los Angeles in the summer of 2019 where he spent the last seven seasons as a Clipper, was dealt back to the Raptors, albeit with some controversy this time as a cap circumvention scandal and investigation played out. The deal was eventually completed, with Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, and draft picks going the other way. With Leonard again, the expectation, like in 2018, shifted from a team that could be amongst a collection of contenders to one with title aspirations.
This Raptors iteration, led by a 25-year-old Scottie Barnes who just set a new career-high with 41 points on Oct. 30 against the Orlando Magic and who is one of the best two-way stars in the game, is different than the 2018-19 version. It is younger and less experienced in a conference that is more talented and more experienced.
What was a 24-year-old Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the Milwaukee Bucks in 2018-19 is now a 32-year-old Antetokounmpo - a championship and MVP to his name - leading the Miami Heat with fellow all-star Bam Adebayo. The Philadelphia 76ers have LeBron James, Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown, and Joel Embiid replacing a younger Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Jimmy Butler. The Boston Celtics have a better Jayson Tatum and now Paul George and have recent championship DNA with their 2024 title. The Indiana Pacers, who had all-star Victor Oladipo in 2018-19 and won 48 games that season, now have one of game's best point guards in Tyrese Haliburton (health permitting) and former Raptor star Pascal Siakam anchoring a cohesive group. Led by championship-winning coach Rick Carlisle, the Pacers were NBA finalists just two seasons ago. The New York Knicks won just 17 games in 2018-19. This past June, they raised their first NBA championship banner in 53 years.
All of these new factors are why Leonard’s absence - he has played two games this season and averaged 19.5 points per game on 32.4% shooting in those two games - is more glaring than ever. And why he is needed this season more than he was eight years ago.
That Raptors team housed Kyle Lowry - at the time still 32 years old and an all-star. Marc Gasol was a February trade acquisition - another veteran leader, an outstanding interior defender and rebounder who was a master at positioning and one of the most fundamentally sound big men in the game. Siakam was 24 years old, won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award in 2018-19, and is now a four-time all-star. Norman Powell, OG Anunoby, and Fred VanVleet provided the group of talented young guys whose roles fit seamlessly with the rest of the team. Without the services of Leonard that season for 22 games, the team managed a 17-5 record.
But this Raptors team, fresh off of an Oct. 30 defeat against the Orlando Magic in the first round of NBA Cup group play, does not have such bones. Barnes scored a career-high 41 points in the game, but the Raptors lost 121-114. Swingman RJ Barrett was just 3-for-10, and forward Collin Murray-Boyles had 15 of the team’s 26 bench points. Center Jakob Poeltl, maligned and with a hefty contract that the team probably cannot get out of, had a quality game with 12 points and 11 rebounds in 23 minutes. Immanuel Quickley, another who has been constantly talked about as a trade chip, played well too with 17 points, 8 assists, and 6 rebounds. A game like Friday’s though, is a game that the Raptors have to win.
The Magic, without star Paolo Banchero, were led by 28 points from Desmond Bane and 26 points and 11 assists from Franz Wagner. Center Wendell Carter Jr. posted 20 points, and Anthony Black put up 17 points and 10 assists.
It was the Raptors’ (3-2, 2-1 at home) first home loss of the season, but it was the type of the game that they should have won, especially with a career performance from Barnes and with the Magic without their best player.
The Raptors visit Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 1, which is the start of a four-game road trip that sees matchups against the Clippers, Denver Nuggets, and Bucks. The team then returns home for the Memphis Grizzlies (5-0 as of this writing) and Celtics before playing at the 76ers, two home dates against the Knicks and one against the Washington Wizards, and a road game Nov. 20 at the Detroit Pistons.
Leonard’s return timeline from knee swelling suffered prior to the team’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 25 has differed depending on who you ask. The Raptors themselves said last week that he will be re-evaluated in one week, while NBA insider Chris Haynes - who is on top of things leaguewide - has said to expect more like a three-to-four week timeline.
Anyone 35 and over will tell you that they feel different than they did at 27-28. Leonard being more open to the media, and showing more emotion, is a sign that he has changed in that regard over the last eight years, as anyone would. But with that maturation also comes the physical maturation the other way as a professional athlete, the eight additional years of wear and tear - a torn meniscus suffered in the first round against the Phoenix Suns in 2023, for instance - that makes his body different than eight years ago.
Whether it is two weeks or three or four, the Raptors need Leonard healthy and whole for a hopeful stretch run in the spring. They also need to tread water without him.
As the Raptors’ Oct. 25 game in Minnesota tipped off, play-by-play man Matt Devlin brought up the team’s 2018-19 record without Leonard. Color announcer Jack Armstrong replied with, “This is a younger team, though. Different group.”
Bingo.
Bringing in Leonard was a risk that the Raptors had to take. His availability is more important than it was eight years ago.
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