Kawhi Leonard sits out Raptors pre-season opener, likely to miss Vancouver game
The star forward is focused on reconditioning after a long summer layoff, head coach Darko Rajaković said.
TORONTO · Kawhi Leonard missed the Toronto Raptors' pre-season opener against the Miami Heat on Saturday and is unlikely to play next week in Vancouver against the Los Angeles Clippers, head coach Darko Rajaković said. Rajaković said Leonard is focused on reconditioning after a long summer layoff. His trade to the Raptors was paused due to the NBA's investigation into Leonard and the Clippers' salary-cap circumvention. Sportsnet NBA insider Michael Grange added that Leonard's absence was expected.
The Raptors started Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Jakob Poeltl, Immanuel Quickley and Ja'Kobe Walter. Several other Raptors were unavailable, including Jamison Battle, Kyle Anderson and Allen Graves due to back, knee and groin injuries respectively. Nate Bittle, Andre Jackson Jr., Trayce Jackson-Davis, Alijah Martin and Trey Jemison also did not dress. The Miami Heat had all their regulars available, including off-season additions Giannis Antetokounmpo and Klay Thompson.
Leonard was acquired by the Raptors in a blockbuster trade reported early in the off-season. Toronto sent Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, a 2027 first-round swap and two second-round picks to the Clippers in return. The 35-year-old forward is coming off a season where he posted career highs with 27.9 points per game on 62.9 per cent true shooting, adding 6.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.9 steals over 65 games. That performance earned him a seventh-place finish in MVP voting and selections to the All-Star Game and All-NBA second team. Leonard has averaged only 57 games per season over his career and missed the entire 2021-22 season with a torn right ACL. However, he expressed a desire to play more games after meeting the NBA's 65-game threshold for award eligibility last season. “I played 65 (games) last year,” Leonard said at Raptors media day. “Hopefully this year I can play more and even build on that, adding games in the playoffs.” Leonard and Raptors vice president of health and performance Alex McKechnie helped popularize the term "load management" during the superstar's first season with the Raptors in 2018-19.
With files from Sportsnet