Leonard to miss lone game vs. Lakers in LA

Just hours before he was supposed to play his only game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on Sunday night, Toronto Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard learned he would not even suit up for the contest.

After jamming his left foot in the closing minutes of the Raptors' 107-98 win in Phoenix on Friday, Leonard tried to work out the injury during a Saturday practice at UCLA. But Toronto coach Nick Nurse told the media before the game that Leonard would sit the game out and second-year forward OG Anunoby would start in his place.

"It shifts us around a little bit," Nurse told the media.

Leonard was already likely to sit Monday's game at Utah as Toronto takes a very cautious approach with its best player. The plan is to sit Leonard one game as part of back-to-backs -- the team has already done it twice thus far -- as the Raptors think more long-term.

"I don't think we've decided how long that's gonna be yet," Nurse recently said of the plan. "We're going game by game."

Leonard, 27, missed all but nine games last season, his last with the San Antonio Spurs, because of an 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.

Leonard, twice the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, is averaging 26.1 points and 7.6 rebounds in 34 minutes per game this season. An L.A.-area native, Leonard is viewed by many as a serious candidate to land with the Lakers as a free agent next offseason.

According to ESPN, there is no indication yet whether Leonard will play Monday in Utah.

(With inputs from agencies.)