Kawhi Leonard was going to come home, one way or another, this past offseason. His hometown may be in LA, and he may have played with the Los Angeles Clippers for seven seasons, but his basketball home will always be north of the border — with the Toronto Raptors welcoming their prodigal son back with open arms.

Leonard, in a poignant video he posted on his official X account ahead of the Raptors' season-opening clash against the Chicago Bulls, shared just how much the year he spent with the team means to him, and how he's raring to go on a similarly magical run with this new-look squad seven seasons after he left in free agency.

“One thing I've learned about time: people move on. Things change. And even the greatest moments become memories. But some things, some things stay with you. What we shared here, that's forever,” Leonard said. “They say the second time isn't as good as the first, but we'll see.”

“It wasn't luck the first time. And I still know what it takes.”

As I Return. pic.twitter.com/yMv1iqMt30

— Kawhi Leonard (@Way2Whi) October 20, 2026

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The Raptors certainly believe that Leonard could help this young team they have get over the hump in a loaded Eastern Conference. They traded away Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two unprotected first-round picks, an unprotected pick swap, and two second-round picks to the Clippers to re-acquire the services of the 2019 NBA Finals MVP.

It's a testament to how beloved Leonard is among Raptors fans for his playoff heroics that they still welcomed him back even though he chose the glitz and glamour of LA over staying in Toronto seven years ago. Moreover, he didn't exactly cover himself in glory in the way his Clippers tenure ended — in a cap circumvention controversy that had him fined $700,000 for his role in that scandal.

But Leonard did prove to be the missing piece for the Raptors after years of coming up short in the playoffs. Will Toronto catch lighting in a bottle twice? The 35-year-old star certainly is confident that they have what it takes to do so.