When the Raptors’ interest in Kawhi Leonard first became public, Marc Stein noted that the organization wasn’t as worried about the 35-year-old’s injury concerns as other teams because they still had Alex McKechnie, who kept him healthy enough to win a title in the 2018-19 season.
The Raptors’ health and training staff also has another, more recent win to look back on and draw confidence from. Brandon Ingram hadn’t played more than 64 games since his rookie season in 2016-17 before joining the Raptors. He had only reached the 60-game mark twice in the last five years and played just 18 games in 2024-25 after suffering an ankle injury.
Ingram played 77 regular-season games for the Raptors. While he had to miss the last two playoff games with a heel injury, keeping him as healthy as they did for such a long stretch was an accomplishment.
The Raptors need to achieve the same with Leonard.
Kawhi Leonard needs to be healthy to help the Raptors get to the next level
Kawhi Leonard has been anything but healthy and available in recent years. He played 60 games only twice since leaving the Raptors in 2019. While he was relatively healthy and played 65 games last season, there are serious concerns about his availability with the Raptors.
Between Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Collin Murray-Boyles, the Raptors should have enough to survive a handful of absences on Leonard’s part. They will still have talented players and a strong defense to lean on.
Nevertheless, Leonard needs to play at least around 65 games to help get the team to where it wants to be at the top of the Eastern Conference. The Raptors will have to pull off a tricky balancing act between playing Leonard enough in the regular season to win and build chemistry and making sure he gets to the playoffs ready to play heavy minutes and carry the team’s half-court offense.
If Leonard cannot stay healthy enough to deliver postseason success, the trade and his inevitable extension will quickly look bad. Considering how much better the Eastern Conference should be compared to last season, that’s a risk the Raptors took gladly. Without a closer and half-court creator like Leonard, they would risk falling behind the rest of the Eastern Conference contenders right when Scottie Barnes enters his prime. This way, they at least have a shot at competing with the likes of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Detroit, Miami, and Indiana.
Add us as a preferred source on Google