He’ll travel on this upcoming two-game trip to Houston and New Orleans and, because it’s back-to-back and Kawhi doesn’t do those, George could debut Wednesday while Leonard sits. It’s all fluid, but all signs point toward the much-anticipated tandem making its debut this week. NBAReplay Through 10 games, eight of which he played, Leonard felt like he was in Toronto all over again, meaning, getting all the respect from the opposing defense. He managed to overcome that quite well, averaging nearly 30 points and scoring more in fourth quarters than anyone in the NBA. But the Raptors were more relentless and smarter than other teams partly because they have the Leonard scouting report memorized from last year, and they frustrated him.

“As soon as I walked across half court, they’re trying to get the ball out of my hands and sending an extra defender,” Leonard said about Toronto’s defensive approach. NBAReplay “It’s going to get my teammates better. They’re going to do it at times in the playoffs, and they’re going to knock down the wide-open shots, and that’s what wins games. They did a great job on me tonight by sending an extra body, and I’m glad they did because it’s going to make my team better.”