By Brandon Simmons
Maybe it’s the sentiment of the Drake curse being broken or the notion that the Golden State Warriors lost the title in a dramatically, flailing fashion, but the idea for Kawhi Leonard to stay with the Toronto Raptors has been weighing on my mind for a while now. Last season, Leonard, along with guard Danny Green, was traded from the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for guard Demar Derozan in the wake of one of the more controversial injury disputes, pre-Kevin Durant-achilles. Leonard was in the final year of his deal with the Spurs this past season, and would be one year rental, prompting questions of whether he would stay or head back out West with either the Los Angeles Lakers or Clippers. After one season, he hs proven to be someone who can have a team built around him and even got the franchise their first ever title. Still, as free agency looms, the possibility to get a max deal hangs over his head more than his braids. However, it doesn’t have to be a decision that’s hard at all, especially if he sees these 3 reasons.
- Solid Team right now
Kawhi has tasted his first championship one year out of a Spurs jersey, with a whole group of people not named Duncan, Parker or Ginobili. This Raptors team is essentially the same squad that was swept in the 2nd round in the 2018 playoffs by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were led by Lebron James at the time. This year’s team ended up with the 2nd best record in the NBA and won some tough games in the playoffs. In the Finals, none of the supporting cast seemed to take a night off. Guard Fred VanVleet provided clutch 3 pointers while forward Serge Ibaka would put in work on the defensive end and provide scoring on easy baskets when needed. There were some nights that Leonard seemed quiet and not really taking over as expected; but when your starters are scoring in double figures every other night, it provides a little cushion to not do too much throughout the game and save your energy for only key moments.
- The West is only going to get tougher
It’s unclear if anybody has looked at the Western conference outside of Golden State, but things might be picking up real soon. The Lakers recently acquired center Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for guards Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart, as well as forward Brandon Ingram and their 4th overall pick they won in the draft lottery. This gives New Orleans 2 first round picks: the 4th and the number one overall they won in the lottery, which could potentially be used on former Duke standout, Zion Williamson. But in addition to that, there are plenty of teams on the come up ready to take that next step forward. We got a glimpse of how the Denver Nuggets are doing with their young talent and what threat that the Utah Jazz can bring. The Mavericks are going to have Kristaps Porzingis return from his ACL injury and the San Antonio Spurs are going to somehow find a way to climb back into the postseason mix.
Long story short, Kawhi is going to get a reality check when he gets back to the Western Conference. If he does decide to join the Clippers, he may very well take them past the 1st round; but there are way too many obstacles in the West that can block him from getting to the title, even if they brought in a 2nd All-Star. Yes, he did beat the Warriors with Kyle Lowrey by his side, but everybody knows Golden State was suffering a lot of injuries in this series as well. It’s very unlikely that Kawhi will face a squad with that many injuries to its stars and that little help from their supporting cast.
- Continue to carve out your legacy
A slight knock that can be made against Leonard was that he won a lot as a Spur, due to the fact he was playing with hall-of-fame caliber players and an all-time great coach. During one of the Finals games, ABC showed a graphic in which he had the highest regular season winning percentage of all time, right in front of Lakers great Magic Johnson. Obviously, it did not come from his run in the 6, but winning a title in his first year is great start to a career with a franchise. He has a player option for 2019 that he can pick up, but that can also be an opportunity to get a new contract, considering he has boosted his value just a little bit more.
In this era where super teams are being contemplated at every waking moment, Kawhi and the Raptors won their title the “old fashioned” way, which says a lot about how dynamic of a player he is. He did not shy away from any of these moments and the internet has crowned him the killer of all the dynasties. Drake might be the face of Toronto for now, but if Kawhi keeps this pace going, the city will be looking at a new 6 god, of a different type.
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