The Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks ran it back on Thursday night for a preseason contest. In an earlier meeting in exhibition season, the Raptors demolished the shorthanded Knicks, 148-98, at home — with Kawhi Leonard making his second debut for the team following an offseason trade from the Los Angeles Clippers.

Leonard was active on Thursday as the Raptors traveled to Madison Square Garden for their clash against the Knicks. It was a rather quiet outing for Leonard, who recorded just six points in 23 minutes of play. Nonetheless, the Knicks' commentary crew did not pass up an opportunity to take a subtle dig on the two-time NBA Finals MVP, alluding to the cap circumvention saga that the NBA found the Clippers guilty of — which essentially put an end to the Kawhi era in Los Angeles.

“They have aspirations to be a better team than last year,” Hall of Famer Walt Frazier said on call, via Oh No He Didn't on X.

While Kawhi Leonard is at the free throw line…

"They have aspirations to be a better team than last year" 😭 pic.twitter.com/kgUwehzyns

— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) October 16, 2026

For those not in the know, Aspiration was the name of the now-defunct company that the Clippers made use of to funnel around $28 million in under-the-table endorsement money to Leonard.

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The NBA then dropped the hammer on the Clippers when they found them guilty of cap circumvention, stripping them of all their first-round picks from 2029 to 2033 and suspending executives such as owner Steve Ballmer, president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, and president of business operations Gillian Zucker.

Relatively speaking, Leonard got off scot-free. Not only did he escape the sinking ship that was the Clippers, the NBA only ordered him to pay a measly sum of $700,000. Moreover, he now has a chance to compete next season with the Raptors, a young team that's on the rise that just acquired a legitimate first option on offense.

As for the Knicks' commentary crew, nothing appears to escape their sights. They also poked fun at Anthony Davis' injury-proneness earlier in the preseason, and now, it's Leonard they took a jab at.