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Tim BontempsESPN
OAKLAND, Calif. — Toronto Raptors star Kawhi Leonard will not play against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night because of a bruised right hip.
It’s the second straight game Leonard has missed with the hip issue. He also sat out of Tuesday rout of the LA Clippers at Staples Center.
Leonard initially hurt the hip in Sunday’s home loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Raptors — as they have all season — have taken a conservative approach when it comes to his health after he missed all but nine games last season due to tendinopathy in his left quad.
Sporting the best record in the NBA through the first third of the season, Toronto is doing everything it can can to ensure Leonard is healthy and ready to play in what the Raptors hope will be a long, deep playoff run next spring.
So far, the plan certainly has worked from a performance standpoint. Leonard has averaged 26.1 points and 8.0 rebounds per game — both career-highs — along with 3.0 assists and 1.9 steals while shooting 48.8 percent from the floor and 38.1 percent from 3-point range.
Both the Raptors and rival executives have noticed Leonard continually regaining his explosiveness as the season has progressed. Leonard already has five dunks in the month of December, after having 16 through the opening six weeks of the regular season.
Leonard’s absence means both showdowns between these potential combatants in this year’s NBA Finals will have had key players on each side unable to take part. Two weeks ago in Toronto — a game the Raptors won in overtime — Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Draymond Green were unable to take part due to injuries.
This time around, though, they are healthy — but Leonard is not.