TORONTO (AP) — Kawhi Leonard is not expected to play when Toronto visits the Los Angeles Clippers next week, after the Raptors announced Tuesday that the veteran forward will be sidelined for at least a week because of swelling in his left knee.
Leonard, who has a long history of knee problems, will be reevaluated in a week and is undergoing “a treatment and rehabilitation program to address swelling,” the Raptors said. Tests did not reveal any acute
injury to the knee, the team said.
“When Kawhi is not playing, obviously that means we're missing a very important piece,” Raptors coach Darko Rajaković said. “But that opens up a lot of opportunities for other guys and it really gives us an opportunity to work on our connectivity and our togetherness.”
The Raptors-Clippers game on Nov. 2 would have been Leonard's first time facing his former club since an offseason trade to Toronto — one that followed the Clippers getting hit with massive sanctions following a probe into whether they circumvented salary cap rules on Leonard's behalf.
The teams also met in the preseason; Leonard did not appear in that exhibition game.
The NBA hit the Clippers with massive sanctions as a result of that cap-circumvention probe, suspending owner Steve Ballmer for one year, fining the team $30 million and forcing it to forfeit five first-round draft picks, among other penalties.
The 35-year-old Leonard is averaging 19.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals in two games this season, while averaging 26 minutes. He is shooting only 32% in those two games and was a late scratch from Toronto's game against Minnesota on Sunday.
Leonard is a two-time NBA Finals MVP, including when he led the Raptors to their lone title in 2019. After getting traded back to Toronto this summer he agreed on a $115 million extension that, at his option, would run through the 2028-29 season.
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