The reunion of Leonard and Lowry, if only brief, is the coolest thing this hot summer

Kawhi Leonard is back with Raptors, and as we celebrate the return of the basketball star who ushered the Larry O’Brien Trophy to a non-U.S. city for the first time in history, maybe we should push the details of the transaction to the back of our minds.

The first time Leonard joined the Raptors, he arrived as part of the blockbuster trade that sent franchise cornerstone and fan favourite DeMar DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs. Then he left as a free agent as soon as humanly possible, returning home to Los Angeles, to the prospect of teaming up with his buddy Paul George on the Clippers, and to the possibility of some juicy non-salary perks, which we’ll explore later. 

But if we meditate too long on the fact that Leonard has never chosen to play in Toronto, we risk rubbing lustre off the Raptors’ gleaming new acquisition. And dwelling on that circumstance any further just reminds us of the ego-bruising reality of life on the losing end of the rivalry between Toronto and Los Angeles.

Toronto lost Rocket Ismail to the Raiders and Leonard to the Clippers.

Baseball megastar Shohei Ohtani strung the city’s sports fans along in December 2023, as he sought a landing spot after his departure from the L.A. Angels. We all watched that private jet’s flight path as it crossed the continent bound for Toronto, but Ohtani wasn’t on board. He would move, eventually. Across town, to the Dodgers, who last fall defeated the Blue Jays in an all-time classic World Series.

In between all that, Kendrick Lamar put Drake in a hammerlock, then showed up in Toronto for two sold-out shows.

So, given that Leonard didn’t exactly choose Toronto, his return is less a win than a windfall for local sports fans. But it’s a giant step forward for a