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Toronto Raptors star small forward Kawhi Leonard will face his former team, the San Antonio Spurs, for the second time on Friday and the All-Star swingman is treating it like any other game.
Leonard was booed loudly when he made his return to San Antonio earlier in the season. The Raptors lost by a final score of 125-107. Kawhi finished with 21 points, five assists and two steals in 32 minutes while shooting 8-of-13 from the field.
Understated Kawhi says tomorrow is just another game. No point to prove against Spurs. Expects juices to get going when the playoffs come. On new chemistry says players will have to figure out which sacrifices need to be made (to make it all work).
— Ryan Wolstat (@WolstatSun) February 21, 2019
Friday is going to be more meaningful to Spurs shooting guard DeMar DeRozan and the fans in Toronto. DeRozan spent the first nine years of his NBA career with the Raptors and is the franchise leader in games played and points.
Raptors president Masai Ujiri traded DeRozan to the Spurs for Kawhi Leonard so he could make a run at the NBA Finals this season. The trade was a logical one since Leonard is a better player than DeRozan, but the move hurt DeMar and the fans in Toronto. DeRozan wanted to retire with the Raptors.
Because Toronto has the second-best record in the East and Leonard is playing like an MVP, fans in Canada have come to grips with the trade, but will surely give DeRozan a standing ovation on Friday.
