The Raptors have made “pretty good progress”in their efforts to retain Kawhi Leonard, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN said on his podcast. (Hat tip to RealGM)
While the Clippers have long been considered the frontrunners when Leonard hits free agency this summer, the Raptors’ gamble by trading for Leonard last offseason might pay long-term dividends. Toronto’s success in the playoffs thus far and the bonds Leonard has formed with the team has improved the Raptors’ chances of re-signing Leonard.
“They put themselves in it,” Wojnarowski said. “And when Kawhi showed up there, I’m not sure he imagined any future in Toronto. I do think it’s a serious consideration now.”
The season-long courtship has been facilitated by the emergence of young forward Pascal Siakam and Leonard’s good relationship with point guard Kyle Lowry. However, the Raptors’ main selling point is their ability to win with the group they have. The Raptors tied their conference semifinal series with Philadelphia 2-2 behind Leonard’s 39-point eruption on Sunday.
“Toronto is selling winning on him,” Wojnarowski said. “They can’t sell geography to him, I don’t think. I don’t think they can’t sell weather on him. There’s nothing they can do about that. When you have that kind of organization, you sell winning and again, the chance to make the most money.”
Leonard gave up an opportunity for a super max deal in the vicinity of $219MM when he asked out of San Antonio and was granted his wish. He can sign a five-year deal with Toronto for approximately $189MM or head elsewhere on a four-year, $141MM contract.
he’s gone. he’ll sign with the clippers. as attractive as the raptors may be, the clippers aren’t that far behind, they’re close to home and they’re state side.
And everyone was 100% convinced that Paul George was going to sign with the Lakers. The only thing we should truly be 100% convinced of is that we don’t ever have the whole story.
and that he won’t sign with the Spurs. Or could he? Wouldn’t that be amazing?
And look at how well that turned out.
1 year and 48 million reasons to stay in Toronto.
Im a Clippers fan but 48 mil is 48 mil and I doubt they have the California Tax rate to deal with. Heck, for 1 million I’ll live in Toronto for a year.
He can 1+1 with the Clippers like Bron and KD have done.
I don’t see him taking a 1+1 – especially coming off his injury. I think he maxes out on his years and $ wherever he ends up.
He could have stayed in SA and gotten the Supermax and yet he forced his way out, giving up 30M right off the bat.
Yeah, but that had a lot to do with some weirdness from their training/medical staff, and some pretty mean comments coming from the supposed leaders of the team.
Medical staff and players didn’t have his back, and he felt like Pop didn’t have his back either.
Not sure what’s up with the Spurs medical staff, as I’ve always viewed that organization as one of the best run in all of pro sports… but they also missed Danny Green’s injury last year, so the organization’s medical team definitely comes with some red flags now.
You realize he doesn’t lose the 48 million? As long as he is a productive player he can make it up in the contract after this one. And Canada has high taxes too
Yeah but no guarantees 1 year/48 million is on the table after his next long term contract. Injuries, decline, anything can happen. He would be smart to stay in Toronto on a 1+1, Raps have Gasol and Lowry under control for next season, and Toronto is a beautiful city.
If he signs a 1+1 he’ll end up getting a 5 year max contract thereafter. The risk is catastrophic injury. No reason to 1+1 with the raptors really unless he keeps doing it to earn Supermax status.
I think people also discount how hard it is to win the the Western Conference.
The East has gotten better, but it’s still a much easier path to the finals. And once you get to the finals, nearly anything can happen.
I would actually disagree. I think the tide has swung. Golden State is the obvious obstacle in the west, but you have 3 Eastern conference teams this year who are arguably better than any Western conference team not named golden State. Easier to make the playoffs in the East?? No doubt. But as far as path to the finals is concerned, East has gotten a lot tougher than the west
You make a fair point – but I think we have overly discounted how good teams like Denver, Portland, OKC, Utah, San Antonio are – never mind how amazingly good Houston is.
Milwaukee has been great this year (as has Toronto). Philly has made some very nice moves, but I wouldn’t bet on them to beat any of the Western teams I just listed.
That said, I am a Raptors fan who gets NBA League Pass just for the one team (plus streaming on TNT)… so it’s not like I’m super knowledgable about how good everyone is apart from what I see vs the Raptors.
In the East, it seemed pretty obvious that all the top seeds would move on (with Oladipo out at least). The West seemed way more competitive in round 1. Seems more comparable in round 2, except maybe for the overrated Celtics.
Love watching this bloke play, I know there are some great players in the NBA, but for me Kawhi is the best player
I’ve never had the issue but some say once you hit a certain dollar amount, the exact amount stops mattering as much. Whether Toronto’s great team and the difference between their offer and others is enough to cause him to choose to live in Toronto is something only Kawhi can answer. Personally I would live in New York City. But he’s a west coaster so my money’s on the Clips.
As far as big cities go, Toronto > NYC.
Hard to beat the weather of the west coast, though. Plus, that’s home.
But if I were a betting man, I’d put money on him staying in Toronto. The fit has been so very good, and people often undersell it as a mass media market. I think Kawhi could make more money in endorsement deals etc in Toronto than anywhere else in the NBA.
Pretty sure no one puts Toronto above NYC as far as big cities go except for you. Maybe Toronto itself is better than LA, like actual LA not the surrounding beach communities.
He calls San Diego home though, or at least it’s a 13M crash pad. Clippers just make too much sense. Lakers are a joke.
He already knows how hard the West is. East is only easy in the 1st round. The bottom 4 West teams are better than the bottom 4 East teams.
Only people who put Toronto above NYC are people who’ve been to both…
Though of all the teams listed, I suspect Brooklyn doesn’t get enough love as a potential destination, but I see that as a landing spot for KD. The Knicks are too much of a mess.
For Kawhi, I would be incredibly surprised if he ends up somewhere different than Toronto or the LAC. And even then, if Toronto gets to the finals, I don’t see him leaving.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that Toronto even gets past Philly, though with home court they should be able to take care of business.
Toronto > NYC? That’s funny…
Have you been to both?
Many that I’ve met in the midwest share this sentiment, but not everyone. NYC clearly is the larger city with more going on, while Toronto is far cleaner, nicer, and more affordable etc. Weather is almost identical.
While I give Toronto a lot of love (especially over NYC), it’s only fair to also note that while LA is mostly a dump, the Orange County area surrounding the city is about as close to heaven-on-earth as you can find in North America.
SoCal/San Diego > Vancouver, BC >>> pretty much everywhere else.
For NBA cities, I’d probably round out my top destinations as:
1) LA
2) Toronto
3) Denver
4) Portland
5) Boston
6) Phoenix
7) Philly
8) San Antonio
9) Houston
10) Brooklyn
But clearly I have different interests/priorities than most NBA athletes. And now you all know what cities will get priority when I look to move out of the midwest.
What’s funny is you talking out of your ass. Toronto is WAY better than NYC. Cleaner, friendlier. Obviously NYC is bigger than Toronto, but bigger certainly does not mean better.
Toronto is better than NYC and it’s not even close
Gets super max deal with Sixers…
^^hatching a diabolical scheme^^
Hinkie could have done it! #IStillTrustTheProcess