"No. And the only reason why is because he did what he came to do. And he said it from day one. "I'm not staying here". From day one, "I don't know why they traded for me. I don't want to be here. I'm not staying here." Now Toronto put their best bid in, man. The city bowed down like we've never seen before, man."
"But his mind was made up, man. Kawhi is Kawhi. I thank him eternally for helping us win a championship and carrying us to a moment to where I could be solidified and go on to make a ton of money and we are forever indebted to him for that. But yes, you could look back and say, "Oh, we wish he would have did this. We wish he would have did that.""
Kawhi Leonard declared from the start that he would not remain in Toronto and departed after achieving the goal of winning a championship. Toronto made its strongest effort to retain him and the city celebrated the title intensely. Fred VanVleet expresses gratitude for Leonard’s role in securing the championship, credits Leonard with changing many lives, and acknowledges that the title enabled his own career advancement and financial opportunities. Younger Raptors looked to Leonard for confidence during critical stretches, and the possibility of Kevin Durant returning in Game 5 of the 2019 Finals created lingering tension and uncertainty leading up to that decisive moment.
Read at Raptors Republic
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