TORONTO – Kawhi Leonard scored 23 points in his first regular-season game back with the Raptors as Toronto earned an emphatic 135-92 win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
Leonard added six rebounds and two assists as Toronto (1-0) led by as many as 48 points in its home opener.
Despite the solid performance, Leonard was surprisingly inefficient, going 5 for 17 on field-goal attempts, including 2 for 6 on three-pointers.
Leonard was traded back to the Raptors in a blockbuster deal with the Los Angeles Clippers this past summer.
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Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley also had 23 points. Barnes pulled down six rebounds and added five assists. Quickley had seven assists.
Jalen Smith and former Raptor Norm Powell scored 15 points apiece for Chicago (0-1). Smith also had eight rebounds.
Takeaways
Bulls: Chicago was overmatched from the opening tip-off, but poor shooting didn’t help its cause. The Bulls went 27 for 85 on field-goal attempts, including 4 for 36 from three-point range. Even their free throws were an issue, with Chicago making 34 of 47 from the charity stripe.
Raptors: Head coach Darko Rajakovic implied before the game that Leonard would be under some kind of minutes restriction as he ramps up his conditioning. Thanks to Toronto’s early lead — leading by as many as 29 points in the first half alone — all of the Raptors starters sat for most of the fourth quarter, with Leonard on the court for a total of 24 minutes.
Key moment
Already leading 43-23 after the first quarter, the Raptors opened the second on a 9-0 run, capped by centre Jakob Poeltl’s free throw, putting the game out of reach.
Key stat
Toronto scored 43 points in the first quarter. The Raptors surpassed that total in a single period on five occasions last season.
Up next
Toronto: Visit the Washington Wizards on Friday.
Chicago: Visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
