Kawhi Leonard won a championship the last time he played for Toronto. Can he do it again?
The player who led Toronto to its first NBA title returns to the franchise after a season in which he posted the highest scoring average of his career.
Some returns simply grab attention, while others come with a story that still carries weight. Kawhi Leonard is back with the Toronto Raptors , and that inevitably brings back memories of the season that ended in the only way the franchise could have hoped for: with a championship.
The last time ended with the trophy in his hands
Leonard joined Toronto for the 2018-19 season after being traded from San Antonio . What followed became one of the most important chapters in Raptors history.
In his only season with the franchise, Kawhi helped Toronto win the first NBA championship in team history. The series against Golden State ended 4-2, and Leonard was named Finals MVP .
After winning the title, he took a different path. He became a free agent and signed with the Los Angeles Clippers , leaving behind a season that would forever be associated with the Toronto jersey.
Now that jersey is part of his present again.
Toronto is no longer that team
The reunion is not happening with the same roster that won the championship. The Raptors have built a different project and enter the 2026-27 season after finishing the previous campaign with a 46-36 record , good for fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
Their playoff run ended in the first round against Cleveland, with the series finishing 3-4. Still, Toronto had taken a significant step forward compared with the previous season, winning 16 more games during the regular season.
That growth is what makes Leonard's return so interesting. He is not joining a team that is simply trying to find an identity , but a roster that had already begun showing signs of progress and now adds a player with experience on the biggest stage.
Kawhi is coming off his highest-scoring season
This is where one of the most intriguing details of this second chapter comes in.
During the 2025-26 season, while playing for the Clippers , Leonard averaged 27.9 points per game across 65 appearances. It was the highest scoring average of his career.
The number is especially notable because it came in his 14th season as a professional.
His return already comes with a contract
The new chapter also came with a significant commitment from the franchise.
Leonard agreed to a two-year, $115 million extension, which includes a player option for the 2028-29 season . The deal came after the NBA concluded its investigation into Leonard and the Clippers over potential salary-cap irregularities.
