Over the past 11 months, Masai Ujiri made two genius trades that forever transformed the Toronto Raptor franchise.
The first was the, at the time according to some, risky move of trading for superstar Kawhi Leonard. The second, at February's trade deadline, was the move for veteran big man Marc Gasol. Both moves propelled the Raptors to a level that they had previously never been to in their 24 year history: a legitimate championship contender. And on Thursday, Ujiri's vision for a champion was realized when the Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors 114-110 in Game 6 to win the 2019 NBA Finals 4-2. Just like their Warrior counterparts, though, the Raptors head into the offseason with questions, the first of which may be the biggest in all of the NBA.
Will Kawhi Leonard resign with the Raptors, putting them in prime position to repeat as champions in 2020, or will he go home to California and transform one of their two franchises - most likely the Clippers if he does leave Toronto - into an immediate championship contender?
Leonard, who signed a 5 year, $94 million deal with the San Antonio Spurs that began in 2015, has a player option for $21.3 million that he will certainly decline in the very near future. This leaves him options on the table. The Raptors can offer him $39 million more than any other team, with Toronto having the ability to offer him the maximum of 5 years and $190 million (if had stayed with the Spurs, he would be eligible for a "supermax" $219 million extension). Conversely, the most any other team can offer the two time Finals MVP is $141 million.
As everyone knows, Toronto was not on Leonard's list of "preferred destinations" last summer when everything went awry in San Antonio. He is a California kid - from Los Angeles, high school in both Moreno Valley and Riverside, and college at San Diego State - and the thought all year from media and observers has been that this summer he would leave for home - most likely joining the Clippers if he were to head west. Due to Leonard's stoic demeanor - he doesn't have social media and doesn't thirst for the public eye like other NBA stars - only he and those close to him know what he will do, if in fact he knows already what he will do. It can be looked at two ways - Leonard could say that he came to Toronto and did his job in delivering a title and that his work is done - or, because they won the title, he could want the opportunity to make even more history and repeat.
Whichever way Leonard decides to go, though, the Raptor franchise will be drastically affected.
Looking at their other free agents, two veteran names are at the forefront. Gasol, the former defensive player of the year and all star who played a massive role in their championship, has a $21.6 million player option that he most certainly will pick up. And Danny Green, who came with Leonard from San Antonio, is unrestricted. Green, though he struggled for stretches in the playoffs, provides the Raptors with a solid wing defender and a guy, when he is on, who is capable of lighting it up from three point range. The emergence of Fred VanVleet in the playoffs, who started second halves for Nick Nurse in the Finals, could impact which way the Raptors go with Green. Norman Powell also came on strong in the playoffs. If Green were to return, i think he would come off the bench.
Ujiri himself, reports Adrian Wojnarowski, is trying to be lured away by a strong offer from the Washington Wizards - reported as $10 million per season and including minority stake in the team. With the Raptor president though, it is hard to envision him leaving, even if Leonard himself leaves, for a situation in Washington that is uncertain given the recent injury history of their star point guard John Wall.
The Raptors' other free agents are non contributors from this title run, in Patrick McCaw, Jeremy Lin, Jordan Loyd and Eric Moreland.
Just like the Warriors with Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, the Raptors have a blockbuster name who will be a free agent in just a matter of weeks on June 30.
Their future hinges on him. Leaving means he wants to go home and build a legacy west. Staying means he continues to build his legacy north.
Get your popcorn ready.
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