After missing the first two preseason games, Kawhi Leonard is expected to make his Toronto Raptors debut against the New York Knicks. While preseason games don’t matter a ton and it’s uncertain how much Leonard will play in his first game, it will be good to see him on the court with Scottie Barnes, Collin Murray-Boyles, Immanuel Quickley, and company. No Raptors starter played more than 23 minutes against the LA Clippers, so it seems fair to assume that Leonard will finish somewhere around the 20-minute mark at most.
Navigating Leonard’s injury concerns and the need to build chemistry before games start to matter in the regular season is tricky. The Knicks made his first outing with the Raptors a bit easier. According to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy, the Knicks will sit their starters, as they are on the second night of a back-to-back. The Knicks have some great reserves, but playing against them is nothing compared to going up against defenders like OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges in the starting lineup.
So, Leonard will get to play alongside his new teammates, build chemistry, and get used to playing in Darko Rajakovic’s system without having to exert too much energy right away.
The Raptors will get another chance against the Knicks later this week
While easing Leonard into his second Raptors tenure isn’t a bad thing, the Raptors will eventually want to get a look at their new starting lineup against some of the best in the NBA.
They have another game against the Knicks coming up on Thursday. Hopefully, the Knicks starters will play at least a good bit of minutes in that game, so the Raptors can see how they match up with the reigning champions. After all, that’s the team to beat in the Eastern Conference right now.
The Raptors lost all regular-season matchups against the Knicks last season and generally didn’t fare well against the top teams. That should change this season with Leonard in the mix. But the Raptors won’t know how close they really are to competing with the best in the East until they play them. Of course, a preseason game will have to be taken with a grain of salt, but it can certainly be a first indicator of how two teams match up player- and scheme-wise.
The Raptors will also play a preseason game against the Detroit Pistons, who finished first in the Eastern Conference last season, before they open the regular season against the Chicago Bulls.
Add us as a preferred source on Google