|
Not because of lingering soreness from the
right quadriceps injury that plagued him last season, according
to Leonard and Toronto coach Nick Nurse, but because they're
looking longer-term.
One way to keep him fresh is not to play him on consecutive
nights, Nurse said, adding, "I don't think we've decided how
long that's gonna be yet. We're going game by game."
Leonard, 27, missed all but nine games last season, his last
with the San Antonio Spurs, because of the injured quad.
"I just wanted to get healthy. I feel healthy now, and they just
don't want to rush into things. I don't either. It's a long
season, so we're thinking about the long road," Leonard said
Friday night after the Raptors ran their record to 8-1 with a
107-98 win in Phoenix.
Leonard, twice the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, left
Friday night's game with a jammed foot, finishing with 19
points, six rebounds and five assists in 30 minutes. In seven
games, he's averaging 26.1 points and 7.6 rebounds in 34 minutes
per game.
Leonard said the injury wasn't serious, although the team listed
him as questionable to face the Lakers. In that scenario, he
would play Monday, according to Nurse.
--Field Level Media
[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
 |
|
