Toronto Raptors’ gamble pays off, and the NBA may never be the same

Despite his unclear future with the team, Kawhi Leonard led the Toronto Raptors to an NBA title, proving the viability of one-year rentals for contending teams

The Toronto Raptors, led by superstar forward Kawhi Leonard, defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-110 in Game 6 to secure their first NBA title, putting to rest any lingering questions about Leonard’s impending free agency or the offseason trade that made this all possible.

After years of regular season, success had been negated by postseason losses at the hands of LeBron James, it was clear to Raptors President of Basketball Operations Masai Ujiri that a tandem of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, while talented, had reached its ceiling and would not be able to bring Toronto a coveted championship.

Meanwhile, the San Antonio Spurs had a disgruntled superstar on their hands in Kawhi Leonard. Leonard, despite having been cleared to play by team doctors, refused to play for much of the 2017-18 season, fearing the re-aggravation of a knee injury suffered against Golden State the previous postseason.

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Despite efforts by the Spurs’ brass to reach an amicable resolution, Leonard declined a super-max extension and demanded a trade, preferably to his home city of Los Angeles.

Ujiri, however, was not deterred by Leonard’s affinity for Southern California. The Raptors pursued him heavily, eventually landing Leonard and Danny Green in exchange for DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl, and a first-round pick. He also fired head coach Dwane Casey, who had just been named Coach of the Year, in favor of Nick Nurse, a young and unproven assistant.

At the time, the move was highly controversial, as DeRozan was a fan-favorite who had spent his entire career with the Raptors and had publicly expressed his love for the city. Meanwhile, Leonard was a flight-risk who was coming off of a season in which he played just 9 of a possible 82 games, and had gained many detractors during his public feud with a well-respected Spurs organization.

However, it was also clear that Leonard, if healthy, could lift Toronto to previously unknown heights. With LeBron James departing the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers, Ujiri was quickly assembling an Eastern Conference favorite.

The additions of Leonard, Green, and later Marc Gasol to an already talented roster which included Lowry, Serge Ibaka, Pascal Siakam, and Fred VanVleet made Toronto an elite defensive unit which also had the firepower to keep up with the league’s best offenses.

All the while, rumors about Leonard circulated, with many pinpointing the Los Angeles Clippers as his most likely free-agent destination. Clippers head Doc Rivers did little to quiet the rumors, publicly comparing Leonard to Michael Jordan and receiving a $50,000 tampering fine as a result, per an official announcement from the league office.

Toronto businesses, meanwhile, made their sales pitches to Leonard, with one real estate agency offering him a free Toronto penthouse if he elected to re-sign with the Raptors, per CBS Sports. Leonard, known for his calm, even-keeled demeanor, simply focused on basketball

The Raptors had finished the regular season 58-24, good for the league’s second-best record (behind only the Milwaukee Bucks) and the East’s No. 2 seed. Leonard, who played just 60 games in the regular season, per Basketball-Reference, was well-rested for the postseason and ready to pursue his second NBA title.

What followed was simply magnificent. Leonard put together one of the most unbelievable individual postseasons that the NBA has ever seen, scoring 30-plus points on 14 occasions. He and the Raptors made short work of upstart Orlando Magic, before being pushed to the brink in a seven-game series victory against the Philadelphia 76ers.

With the score tied at 90 and the clock expiring, Leonard hit the first Game 7 buzzer-beater in NBA history, sending Toronto to the Eastern Conference Finals in spectacular fashion:

After jumping out to a 2-0 lead over Toronto in the Eastern Conference Finals, Giannis Antetokoumpo and the Bucks were stymied by Leonard’s remarkable defense. Despite the Bucks’ best efforts, Toronto won four straight games to advance to an NBA Finals date with Golden State, the two-time defending champions.

Despite missing Kevin Durant to a calf injury, the Warriors were still viewed by many as favorites in the series, with five All-Star caliber players on the roster. Toronto, however, made it clear early on that they would be a much more difficult opponent than James’s Cavaliers had been.

The Raptors won Game 1 despite Leonard’s struggles (5-of-14 from the floor) behind Pascal Siakam’s remarkable 32-point performance. Siakam missed just three of his 17 shot attempts, leading the Raptors to a tone-setting victory.

Almost every member of Toronto’s roster stepped up at some point during the series. Leonard was consistently the alpha, but Lowry, Siakam, VanVleet, Ibaka, Green, and Gasol all had marquee moments. VanVleet, in particular, was magnificent, knocking down difficult shots at opportune moments and often looking like Toronto’s second-best player.

While Golden State was hampered by major injuries to Durant, Klay Thompson, and Kevon Looney, the Raptors remained focused and simply outplayed the Warriors for long stretches. In an era of super-teams, a Golden State title had seemed inevitable since the start of the season.

However, Leonard, the man responsible for the collapse of the Miami Heat dynasty, was too much for even the Warriors, regarded by many as the best team ever assembled. Leonard, the NBA’s dynasty killer claimed his second Finals MVP, putting to rest questions about his future for at least a night.

Even if Leonard departs in the offseason, Ujiri’s bold decision to trade for him ranks among the great front office moves of all time. While many executives are hesitant to embrace change, Ujiri was honest with himself about the state of the Raptors. He realized that the core of DeRozan and Lowry was simply not title material, and chose to pursue serious contention rather than delaying a rebuild.

Ujiri should be applauded by fans around the league for pulling the trigger on a trade which was essentially basketball roulette. He knew that trading DeRozan would have bad optics, and while the odds of Toronto winning a title this year seemed slim due to Golden State’s dominance, the Raptors are the NBA’s newest champions as a direct result of his approach to roster constructions.

Teams like the Portland Trail Blazers, who have struggled to find meaningful playoff success with their current core, should follow Toronto’s lead. While stars like Leonard are not often available via trade, there is a recent precedent for such trades.

The Oklahoma City Thunder acquired Paul George from the Indiana Pacers to fill the scoring void left behind by Kevin Durant’s departure. Philadelphia acquired an unhappy Jimmy Butler from the Minnesota Timberwolves in search of contention, much like Minnesota had done just a year earlier when they traded assets to the Chicago Bulls to secure his services.

While neither move worked out quite as well as the Leonard trade, teams looking to contend in the short-term have another opportunity this offseason, with Anthony Davis publicly requesting a trade from the New Orleans Pelicans.

Davis, like Leonard a year ago, has his sights set on Los Angeles, naming the Los Angeles Lakers as his preferred destination. If a team other than the Lakers or New York Knicks acquires Davis, he will be seen as a one-year rental. Davis and his agent, Rich Paul, seem intent on forcing a move to a major market.

However, the Raptors’ title proves that one-year rentals can be worth the risk under the right circumstances. A team like Portland could attempt to acquire Davis and go all-in on next season. Now seems as convenient a team as any, with the Golden State dynasty seemingly over and Durant and Thompson both expected to miss most, if not all, of next season.

Up-and-coming, asset-rich teams with the potential to contend, like the Clippers and Brooklyn Nets should also inquire about Davis. Both teams have paths to two max-contract slots and could opt to tempt the Pelicans with young assets in an effort to accelerate the path to contention rather than waiting to develop young players.

In the unlikely case that the Boston Celtics re-sign Kyrie Irving, Danny Ainge could offer New Orleans two proven young players in Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, plus a bevy of draft picks. However, Davis and Paul have singled out Boston as a team with which he will not re-sign, per Paul’s recent interview with Sports Illustrated.

However, all eyes are on Leonard and his free agency at the moment. Whether or not he chooses to re-up with Toronto, his time with the team has been a resounding success to this point, and has validated the idea that when top-end talent becomes available, it is vital for teams close to title contention to pursue its acquisition, or otherwise risk closing their own championship windows.