Back at the start of the Kawhi Leonard trade saga, the speculation surrounding the All-NBA forward suggested he was going to end up on the Los Angeles Lakers at some point. Whether he played out his final season in San Antonio, got traded to Los Angeles, or was sent elsewhere and joined the team in 2019 as a free agent, all roads ended with Leonard wearing the purple and gold.
If he does end up there, it will be via that third option. The Toronto Raptors made a deal to get Leonard, and despite the fact that there’s no guarantee he sticks there beyond this season, Masai Ujiri is prepared to spend this year making the case that the All-NBA forward shouldn’t go anywhere. But of course, before we get to that point, Leonard has to prove he’s able to get back to the pre-injury form that made him a superstar.
Leonard has been working out all summer to get back to that point, and via a picture on the Instagram account of Raptors assistant Phil Handy, we learned that one recent workout included a rather intriguing guest in Kobe Bryant.
Obviously, there will be some who take this as a sign that Leonard has the Lakers in his sights, as he’s working out with one of the best players in franchise history. It’s a bit of a messy road to get to that conclusion, though, so the most logical conclusion is that this is Leonard going through a workout with an all-time great who can help him become a more lethal scorer. Unless it means that first thing. Who knows?
