Report: Raptors 'increasingly confident' Kawhi Leonard will re-sign

The Toronto Raptors may be having an outstanding season, but it’s been clear from the beginning that the teams’ window centres around Kawhi Leonard.

If Kawhi leaves in free agency, this is a magical one-year run for the franchise. If he stays, longer-term playoff relevance is within their reach. As a result, Raptors fans have been looking for clues of his intentions all year.

Josh Lewenberg of TSN may have dropped a big one on Monday.

Lewenberg is reporting that the club is “increasingly confident” they will retain their 27-year-old star thanks to increasing mutual trust between team and player.

Now, it’s important to note the wording here is nicely couched. If their confidence in re-signing him was zero percent and now it’s up to five, that would be an increase, although not one that makes a material difference.

The probabilities are almost certainly higher than that, but it’s still fair to say no one knows with any certainty what Kawhi is going to do — possibly with the exception of the man himself.

All year long there has been plenty of speculation about the forward returning home to Los Angeles with either the Clippers or Lakers, but perhaps he has turned a corner with the Raptors, who have the ability to offer him the most lucrative contract.

It would be unfair to say we know anything today we didn’t know yesterday, but much like the team itself, Raptors fans can be increasingly confident “The Claw” will be around a little longer.

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