Kawhi Leonard explains curious move in his first game back with the Raptors

Kawhi Leonard wanted more action, even though the Toronto Raptors didn’t need it from him in his first game back. 

Amid a blowout against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Leonard started the fourth quarter, an intriguing move given that the game was seemingly already out of the visiting team’s reach.

The Raptors were up by 32 points to start the final period, and Leonard could have spent the rest of the contest resting on the bench while watching his team pummel Chicago. 

But the seven-time NBA All-Star Leonard wanted to build more rhythm after missing plenty of games in the 2025-26 season.

“I haven’t gotten a chance to play a lot,” Leonard told reporters after the game, via Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports.

“I know we were blowing them out, but the goal was to get 23, 24 minutes tonight, and I just needed more reps to learn plays, added the two-time NBA Finals MVP. “This is where you get better… You need game reps.”

Leonard had a salty shooting night against Chicago, going just 5/17 from the field, but he made all 11 of his attempts from the foul line. He’s always been an efficient scorer, so it should get better for the 35-year-old vet.

Leonard played only 65 games last season with the Los Angeles Clippers while dealing with load management and knee and ankle issues.