We all knew the Kawhi Leonard-San Antonio Spurs relationship was coming to an end soon, but the deal San Antonio pulled off to part ways with him was unexpected. Many saw Leonard going to the Los Angeles Lakers or Clippers, which he still might in free agency next season, but the Spurs found a way to improve themselves by giving up a player that refused to play for them. The Spurs sent Leonard, along with Danny Green, to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday morning for a package that includes DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl, and a 2019 first-round draft pick.
The Raptors have been in the Kawhi discussions for some time now, with the trade talks spanning two weeks, but none of those talks involved the Raptors' top player. The Raptors' officials even met with DeRozan in Las Vegas during the Summer League, in which he left the meeting assured that he was not getting traded. Tuesday's trade led DeRozan to take to Instagram and vent his frustrations at his now former team, stating "be told one thing & the outcome another." He went on to discuss the lack of loyalty in the game of basketball, and even threw in there "can't trust 'em,"
The Raptors are hoping they can convince Leonard to stay for longer than the final year of his deal this upcoming season. Although, the former NBA Finals MVP has reportedly already expressed his want to sign with the Lakers in free agency. The one difference maker with next summer is that the Raptors can offer him a five-year, $190 million deal, but he could only sign elsewhere for as much as four years, $141 million.
The Spurs were clearly ready to move on from this situation with their one-time star, who sat out this past season and basically went silent after healing from his injury. There has been reports of a bad relationship with head coach Gregg Popovich, which has led Leonard to refuse to meet with the team. Popovich said in an interview after the trade that they are "ready to move on." And they can do just that comfortably, knowing they have DeRozan locked in for another three years, as he does not have an opt-out clause until the 2020-2021 season.
The move on the Raptors side has many basketball fans scratching their heads as to why they would give up so much for someone that may not play this upcoming season. And even if he does play, this seems to be on pace to being just a one-year rental. And this comes in the same season that LeBron James finally leaves the Eastern Conference, making it a little more up for grabs for teams that have been on the verge of making it to the Finals, such as the Raptors. This entire off-season continues to be a question mark for the Raptors, who also parted ways with the Coach of the Year, Dwane Casey.
And they just added the biggest question mark in the game today. When will he play? Where will he play? And when he finally comes around, will he still be able to play at the MVP-caliber level he was two years ago? No one knows, because has anyone really talked to Kawhi?
The Raptors have been in the Kawhi discussions for some time now, with the trade talks spanning two weeks, but none of those talks involved the Raptors' top player. The Raptors' officials even met with DeRozan in Las Vegas during the Summer League, in which he left the meeting assured that he was not getting traded. Tuesday's trade led DeRozan to take to Instagram and vent his frustrations at his now former team, stating "be told one thing & the outcome another." He went on to discuss the lack of loyalty in the game of basketball, and even threw in there "can't trust 'em,"
The Raptors are hoping they can convince Leonard to stay for longer than the final year of his deal this upcoming season. Although, the former NBA Finals MVP has reportedly already expressed his want to sign with the Lakers in free agency. The one difference maker with next summer is that the Raptors can offer him a five-year, $190 million deal, but he could only sign elsewhere for as much as four years, $141 million.
The Spurs were clearly ready to move on from this situation with their one-time star, who sat out this past season and basically went silent after healing from his injury. There has been reports of a bad relationship with head coach Gregg Popovich, which has led Leonard to refuse to meet with the team. Popovich said in an interview after the trade that they are "ready to move on." And they can do just that comfortably, knowing they have DeRozan locked in for another three years, as he does not have an opt-out clause until the 2020-2021 season.
The move on the Raptors side has many basketball fans scratching their heads as to why they would give up so much for someone that may not play this upcoming season. And even if he does play, this seems to be on pace to being just a one-year rental. And this comes in the same season that LeBron James finally leaves the Eastern Conference, making it a little more up for grabs for teams that have been on the verge of making it to the Finals, such as the Raptors. This entire off-season continues to be a question mark for the Raptors, who also parted ways with the Coach of the Year, Dwane Casey.
And they just added the biggest question mark in the game today. When will he play? Where will he play? And when he finally comes around, will he still be able to play at the MVP-caliber level he was two years ago? No one knows, because has anyone really talked to Kawhi?
