Kawhi Leonard did not want to be traded to Toronto last offseason. Now he is one game away from being a two-time NBA Champion and Finals MVP. It was Zaza Pachulia who stepped out illegally into his landing zone in the 2017 Western Conference Finals while he was with the San Antonio Spurs, putting him out the rest of the series with an ankle injury. The Warriors went on to win their second title in three years a few weeks later.
Leonard went to the Eastern Conference to claim the throne LeBron James left behind after he left Cleveland for Los Angeles after four straight trips to the Finals. The guy Leonard had to face in the Eastern Conference Finals was from the same division as James, and was already drawing comparisons as the next marquee start in the league. The Raptors fell down 0-2, then promptly disposed of Giannis Antentekumpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in six games to reach only their second-ever trip to the championship round.
Golden State had a starting lineup of all-star caliber talent. Yet not only do they trail in a series for the first time since the 2016 Western Conference Finals, they are facing an elimination game for the first time since Game Seven of the 2016 NBA Finals.
That is the lone blemish for a team who would have won four straight NBA titles since the 1959-66 Boston Celtics. The Warriors benefited from Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love being injured in the 2015 Finals, and Leonard had Golden State’s number leading up to his 2017 injury.
Now that summer is here the insects are out in full force around the county, and the dreaded injury bug has bit several members of that vaunted Warrior lineup. Toronto has been more than willing to capitalize.
Draymond Green even told the press this week:
“Nobody cares those guys are hurt. People want to see us lose, so I’m sure people are happy they’re hurt.”
When the man is right, he’s right. No one outside of Oakland gives a good damn about the Warriors in the grand scheme of things. When Kevin Durant signed there three years ago, the Warriors became even more unlikable, if that was possible. The second-best player in the league took the easy way out, and gravy-trained two championship rings out of his decision.
The Cleveland blemish in 2016 went the distance. If the Raptors finish this series in anything short of seven games, it puts an unmistakable dent into the Warrior legacy of dominance.
Did you also know that the 2016 Warrior team was the first NBA team to ever blow a 3-1 series lead and lose in the NBA Finals?
Reports indicate that Leonard may still leave Toronto in the offseason. If he does Leonard would be the first Finals MVP to change teams the offseason following a title. (Michael Jordan retired after winning his final championship and Finals MVP in 1998).
Lost in this entire argument is the irony that the NBA brought two Canadian teams into their fold in 1995, and one moved to the United States in 2001. There is only one Canadian franchise in Major League Baseball, and the Toronto Blue Jays won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993. The Raptors are a win away from bringing the Larry O’Brien Trophy north of the border for the first time in NBA history.
So how is it the National Hockey League has seven Canadian franchises, and none of them have won the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993?
-JC24