Reporter Says He’s Heard Whispers That Kawhi Leonard Could Return To The Toronto Raptors On Short-Term Deal

Kawhi Leonard has guided his Toronto Raptors into the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors, with the team from north of the boarder protecting their home floor in Game 1 and stunning some people to take a 1-0 series lead. While the Raptors might appear overmatched on paper in the Finals against the Warriors, considering the team reached the championship round, it proves that they’re more than just one superstar.

With Kawhi Leonard set to become one of the top free agents available on the NBA market in about a month — and has been linked to a few teams like the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers — there are plenty of fans and people in the media that think it’s only a matter of time before he bolts Canada for another team. But, in the words of Lee Corso, “not so fast, my friend,” because a new report claims that the former NBA Finals MVP might be interested in staying with the Raptors.

The report comes from longtime NBA writer Henry Abbott, who dropped a short, but powerful, statement in one of his most recent pieces on the site TrueHoop. Take a look at what Abbott had to say about the possible future of Kawhi Leonard below.

Yeah, that highlighted part about Kawhi Leonard being open to “return to Toronto, at least on a short-term deal,” is pretty juicy. And with the Raptors already jumping out to an edge on the two-time defending champion Warriors in the NBA Finals, should the team close the deal and win the championship, they may find themselves in the best position to re-sign the best two-way player in the league. Even without grabbing a ring, per Abbott’s report, Leonard still could be interested in sticking around.

Kawhi Leonard staying with the Raptors would be a major curveball, assuming the TrueHoop report has accuracy. This summer is loaded with first-class free agent superstars, and teams like the Clippers and Lakers, among others, have a chance to really jump ahead in the title race should they be able to land one or two of them. It’d be a big blow if Leonard decided to stay pat, even if it were for two years or so.

With the Clippers already being fined $50,000 for tampering by mentioning Kawhi’s name alongside Michael Jordan’s, and rumors that LeBron James has already met with Leonard, there’s a whole bunch of stuff floating around out there. We’ll have to wait and see which ones have validity, and which ones are total BS just to get people talking.

(H/T Total Pro Sports)