The Toronto Raptors are running out of runway in the Kawhi Leonard situation, and their newly released schedule makes that hard to ignore.
Toronto announced its training camp and preseason slate a few days ago, setting media day for September 28 before the team heads to Quebec City for camp. The preseason begins on October 3, with games lined up against the Miami Heat, LA Clippers, New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons.
On paper, it’s just a schedule release. In practice, it’s a reminder that the calendar keeps moving while the Leonard saga still has no finish line.
Late September can sound distant in the middle of summer, but it’s suddenly close enough to feel uncomfortable. The Raptors are still waiting for this to reach a conclusion, and the preferred outcome is obvious: Leonard becomes an official Raptor before camp opens.
That certainty feels harder to find by the week. Early reporting suggested the Raptors and Clippers were still confident the trade would get done sooner rather than later. But on July 29, ESPN’s Baxter Holmes reported that the situation “could drag into 2027 if the parties don’t agree on the findings or any proposed settlement that involves punishing the team, sources with knowledge of the case told ESPN on Wednesday.”
That kind of timeline changes everything. With each passing week, the concern around Toronto’s position only grows.
Training camp starts on September 29, which leaves a little under two months for the investigation to be finished, for the NBA to make its call, and for Leonard to hopefully land in Toronto. That’s not much time, especially in a situation that’s already been going for a year and doesn’t appear built for a fast resolution.
If nothing gets settled and the Raptors decide they’re not comfortable moving forward, they could open camp with Brandon Ingram and Gradey Dick still on the roster instead of Leonard. That would be awkward on every level.
Ingram would arrive and do his part, but it’s not hard to see the tension there. He’d be back with a team that needs him to fill a major role, even though the organization clearly tried to move him for an upgrade.
Dick’s situation would be even tougher. A move to the Clippers was supposed to be a clean reset for him. Instead, he could end up back with a Raptors team that probably won’t have much use for him.
And beyond the uncomfortable optics, there’s a basketball problem waiting underneath it all. The Eastern Conference has gotten tougher this offseason, and Toronto needs a superstar No. 1 option beside Scottie Barnes or it risks sliding backward.
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Bruce Brown is one name worth watching if Toronto decides to use it. He spent time with the Raptors before moving on to the Nuggets, and he has spoken positively about his experience in Toronto, which keeps the door open to a possible return. The fit is obvious enough that the front office would not need much convincing, but whether the team actually pulls the trigger is still the part left hanging. [Read more 🡒]