Wild Raptors Return Incoming? - Latest Kawhi Leonard Injury Updates

Sunday night, after the Toronto Raptors lost by 23 to the Minnesota Timberwolves, a former Toronto Raptor sent a message. No words, he just posted this. And his replies turned into a petition. The player was Chris Boucher, and there's a portion of the Raptors fanbase that is looking to bring him back. But there is a big problem with this, because even if the Toronto Raptors wanted to sign Chris Boucher tomorrow, they couldn't possibly do it. At least not right now, but there is a date out there on the calendar where this does become real, where this does become an actual possibility for the Toronto Raptors, and we will dive into all of those logistics. And all of this is happening while the biggest name on the roster is still getting tests done on his knee, and we have the latest updates on that front as well. So why is this all coming to a head right now? Well, anyone that watch the Raptors play the Timberwolves as a fairly good idea. Minnesota out-rebounded Toronto 49-34, and Rudy Gobert himself had 13 of those rebounds. And people are taking notice of the fact that Jakob Poeltl played 19 minutes in that game and only secured one board. So when a guy that was on this team for seven years was known for his rebounding, his hustling, everything that he did out there on the defensive end, post something cryptic like that shrug, fans are putting things together reading between the lines. One reply was pretty blunt about what they're looking for regarding this Chris Boucher message saying gain some weight work on rebounding and you have a job. Now I'm of the belief that Chris Boucher even with his slender frame was a really good rebounder and shot blocker for this team but regardless fans are talking about bringing him back. And it's also not just fans as Raptors Republic made the case back in June that Toronto could bring him back on a team-friendly deal with very little risk. And last word on basketball put it this way. The decision is no longer purely sentimental. It is strategic. So this isn't just people being sentimental, how much they miss and love Chris Boucher. There's a real basketball discussion to have about Chris Boucher returning to the Raptors. We're about to dive into the logistics, but in a vacuum, if you could just insert a player in, would you rather Chris Boucher out there in the lineup or a Nate Biddle? Type in the comments B for Boucher or N for Nate Biddle. So let's take a deeper look out there at Chris Boucher because it's not just a nostalgia pick. He's a guy that was born in St. Lucia, grew up in North Montreal, and went undrafted out there in the 2017 draft. Toronto signed him in the summer of 2018, and that same season he won the G League MVP as well as the G League Defensive Player of the Year with the Raptors 905 in the same season. And that's funny his name is being brought up because there's been so much discourse about that final two-way spot recent moves with the Raptors 905 and Chris Boucher is one of those guys that proved that the Raptors pipeline works but nonetheless he played seven seasons here with the Raptors played a 406 regular season games and scored 3612 points for this team he was of course on the 2019 championship winning team and one thing that not a lot of people bring up about Chris Boucher is that he's seventh in Raptors history in blocks with 384 ahead of guys like Andrea Bargnani and Marcus Camby. In fact, it was recently where Scottie Barnes actually passed him to jump on that list. His best year with the Raptors was the 2020-21 season, where he averaged 13.6 points per game, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks a night in just 24 minutes of action. And here's how rare that is, as since the 96-97 season, only one Raptors averaged 13 and 1.8 blocks and made at least 1-3 a game in a single season, and that is Chris Boucher. Again, a very niche stat line to be sure, but only 12 players have done it since the 96-97 season. Joel Embiid, Chet Holmgren, Jaren Jackson Jr., Kristaps Porzingis, Miles Turner, and Chris Boucher are among that list. And even in his last year here, he was a very effective player. In the 24-25 season, he gave you 10 points a night and shot 36% on his three-point attempts in just 17 minutes of action. But if we recall from that season, Darko Rajakovic rarely let him out of the doghouse, and he played really well when he got his opportunities, but Darko never really liked integrating him out there into the rotation. And then once he left the Torontos, it really fell apart. Last season in Boston, he played just nine games, averaged 2.3 points a night, and made 13% of his three-point shots. At the deadline in February, Boston traded him to Utah just to clear his salary, and then Utah waived him right away. And as of right now, Chris Boucher is currently unsigned. So let's get straight to the point. Would Chris Boucher help this current Toronto Raptors team? The case for him is his size as well as ability to clean up the glass. In his last season with the Raptors, he grabbed 4.5 rebounds a game in 17 minutes of action, And a stretch that over 36 minutes, that's about 9.4 rebounds a night. And obviously, we know he's streaky, but he can certainly space the floor. As everyone not named, Jacoby Walter, Manuel Quickly, made two of 22 threes out there in that game against Minnesota. So a big man that can shoot the three changes how this team will guard Scottie Barnes. So ideally, a rebounding big man that spaces the floor, blocks shots, hits threes. That's a guy that looks like a good fit for this Raptors squad. But there is a real case to be made about not bringing in Chris Boucher. He's currently 33 years old. His last nine games in the NBA were just 2.3 points a night. And again, against a guy like Rudy Gobert, his thin frame is going to get pushed around if we're expecting to him to be this team's center. So for the people saying Chris Boucher would fix this team, would change everything for this squad, that's not true. He'd be a 15th man out there on this roster, be an insurance guy out there on the squad. Now his resume is very good for someone that would be a 15th man. and still only 33 years old not an age that you know declares someone super washed up or anything like that but he's not going to solve the biggest Toronto Raptors problems but here's those logistics that i've been talking about even if the raptors made the decision to bring him in give some extra insurance out there to this roster why wouldn't this be possible as of right now because i know the way some people are sending me dms the way i see some posts being made they want this to happen immediately, right? No one trusts Jakob Poeltl here now at this point. For some reason, Darko Rajakovic doesn't play Trace Jackson-Davis at all, it feels like, and Nate Biddle's currently in a walking boot. And that's currently our true center rotation, unless you want to throw Colin Murray-Boyles in there, who's more of that four spot. But as we've been breaking down on these recent videos, because of the Kawhi trade, the Toronto Raptors, where they took back more salary than they gave out, that forced this team to be hard capped at the first apron. So they cannot exceed $209 million for the rest of this year. So as of right now, the Raptors have just under $1 million to work with in order to potentially fill that final roster spot. And as of right now, a one year minimum deal for a veteran counts about $2.4 million against the cap. Even if we want to push that emergency button right now after one loss to start off this season, it's covered by a case of glass that we can't break till later in the year. But here's the date I promised you earlier in this video. That minimum salary doesn't stay at $2.4 million throughout the whole year, as once the season starts, it shrinks with every day that passes, because you only pay for the days that are left in the season. And Sportsnet reported that Toronto's final roster spot should be opened up by around February. So by the trade deadline, which is February 11th, the Toronto Raptors can make a trade to fill up that final roster spot or bring in someone on the cheap. and honestly that's when a guy like Chris Boucher actually fits when you're in the weeds when you're in the middle of a season you don't want to make these decisions right now be too impulsive after one game like myself and the rest of the fan base everyone is when they start watching sports you want to see how this team develops how they play out what the actual holes are you know as you get you know a couple months of sample size underneath your belt and then make your decisions then so the question will be will this rebounding issue that definitely popped up against the Minnesota Timberwolves be our biggest problem come February? And will there be guys out there with the Raptors 905 out there in our current farm system that haven't stepped up, haven't leveled up to prove that they could fill that spot better than Chris Boucher? And even if I am the biggest Chris Boucher fan on earth, I know Darko Rajaković doesn't like playing players that don't really pass the ball, that don't have that elite court vision, which we know is one of the flaws out there in Chris Boucher's game. So even though Boucher come the middle of the season, if nothing else changes to this roster would definitely be on my shortlist for potential Raptors signings. Even with his desire to return to the Toronto Raptors, or at least him implying that out there on social media, I don't think it's going to be in the cards for him to return. But let me know if you disagree out there in the comments. But let's get to an update that really has a serious impact on how this start of the season is going to go. Kawhi Leonard went through his full pregame routine on Sunday and then felt something in his knee. And he went to the medical staff and they ruled him out. The team called it an effusion in his left knee, and this means basically fluid built up in the joint. The latest we've heard is that the Toronto Raptors have done a bunch of testing over the course of today, and we should get an official update on Kawhi Leonard starting tomorrow. But here's the part of the update that really matters, and I didn't really hear it the day of, is that he had his ACL tear, his meniscus tear, both in his right knee. This one is his left knee, Kawhi missed the full 2021-22 season after he tore his ACL and then in 24-25 he only got into 37 games, that is something that everyone is watching if you are a Toronto Raptors fan and as someone that tore their ACL you know I blew out my ACL lateral meniscus and medial meniscus all at once in my right knee, you hate to hear if this knee issue if all the swelling if all the fluid buildup was something that came from that ligament injury because it takes really years for your legs to get back to full strength but the fact that it's the other side, you know some people might be like oh now he has two bum knees or whatever but basically the fact that it isn't the surgically repaired one is very very good news and it's something he was able to manage over the course of last season as we brought up many times this summer the guy played 65 games last year for the Los Angeles Clippers. Since 96-97 season, seven players have averaged 27 points or more in a season at ages 34 or older. It's Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Karl Malone, and Kawhi Leonard last year. So we know the talent is there and we know the issue isn't in his right leg, but the question that's going to persist throughout this entire season is how often are we going to see him out there on the court? And it's not like we need him every single night. Of course, against the Timberwolves, it did look a little bit scary without him out there on the floor. However, this team, when they won the championship, Kawhi Leonard only played 60 games that season, so you can do it throughout the course of a regular season without Kawhi playing every single night, but it requires other players to step up and the know-how that Kawhi will be fine when it matters most. But that's the template. You rest Kawhi throughout the regular season in hopes of getting the best possible player come May and June when the playoffs are rocking. And if it means we get blown out by the Minnesota Timberwolves, we get some growing pains earlier for the younger guys, that is completely fine by me. But next up, the Toronto Raptors face the Orlando Magic on Wednesday, and Kawhi's status is still unknown for that game. Even if the test is clean and everything shows up fine, I still expect the Toronto Raptors to be very cautious with how they're playing Kawhi Leonard, especially here in November, but we will keep you up to date for all the latest for Kawhi's status for that one. And honestly, his production not being out there in the starting lineup was kind of filled really, really well by Jacoby Walter, who had 22 points out there on Sunday, 5 of 8 shooting from 3 in his first start of the season. If Kawhi needs a few nights here or there, that's a guy who can step up, take the minutes, and honestly, it's not the worst thing for his development. The most important thing is that we see Scottie Barnes step up in Kawhi Leonard's absence and not drop a zero piece like he did against the Minnesota Timberwolves. But of course, when you miss Kawhi, your bench loses depth, and that brings you back to getting a player like Chris Boucher to help fortify your frontcourt. But regardless, my take pretty well stays the same. As much as I love Chris Boucher, he's one of my favorite all-time Toronto Raptors, I wouldn't sign him today even if it was allowed. You need to let this season play out and see what your actual needs are beyond three games into the year. Again, it's a fun idea to float around, how he'd insert into this team, bring back an NBA champion and all those types of things. But I want to know what you guys think in the comments section down below. 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