After a tumultuous year riddled with bizarre and unprofessional behavior from its star player, the San Antonio Spurs finally traded away Kawhi Leonard.
One would think...when a player is essentially forcing your hand...that you wouldn't have much leverage in trade negotiations. But, this is just another case of the Spurs being the Spurs, and the Raptors being the Raptors. In life, there will always be the haves and the have nots.
Spurs GM R.C. Buford absolutely ripped off Raptors GM Masai Ujiri when he dealt Leonard and Danny Green for Jakob Poeltl, a protected 2019 first-round pick and...DeMar DeRozan???
Man! Talk about a sweet haul.
Gregg Popovich and his Spurs rid themselves of Leonard's cancerous behavior -- not to mention the fact that he's a serious injury risk -- and they get back an elite scorer in his prime. This move reeks of Raptors' panic. LeBron James swept them out of the postseason in embarrassing fashion, and Ujiri is clearly looking to shake things up.
But...is now the time to panic? LeBron is finally gone. The Raptors won the most games in the East this past season. They had continuity with DeRozan, Kyle Lowry and Jonas Valanciunas leading the way, with some up-and-coming youngsters like OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, Delon Wright and Poeltl supporting Toronto's veteran stalwarts.
The only true threat to the Raptors' pre-existing roster was Brad Stevens and his hungry-and-talented young Celtics. The East was looking like a two-horse race, and the Raptors clearly had some hope for the future.
Now, they take on an injured player with a bad attitude. AND most of the talking heads are saying Kawhi will go elsewhere in free agency (most likely to join "LABron" and the Lakers).
So you traded one of your franchise players -- in his prime -- for a potential one-year injured rental who sometimes decides he doesn't want to play basketball at all?
Yikes. Ujiri puts his job on the line with this one.
Furthermore, I like Poeltl. He's a rangy, active big who can rebound, block shots and finish around the rim. He is a very good back-up big. I'm sure Pop can coach him up a level, too.
On the flip side, Green and Tony Parker were relics of a past era. Green has done little to nothing since he burned the Heat in the NBA Finals many years ago, and Parker finally moved on by signing with the clueless Hornets.
While the Leonard saga hung over the Spurs' heads, things were looking grim. You can't trade him to a West contender, right? Can you get a fair enough package from the Celtics? (Danny Ainge is too sharp.) Has the West become too stacked for the Spurs to even matter?
But, rather suddenly, that has all changed. The Spurs are right back in the thick of things with LaMarcus Aldridge and DeRozan leading the way, with veteran support from Rudy Gay, Marco Belinelli, Pau Gasol and Patty Mills. On the youth front, Pop will do his best with Dejounte Murray, Poeltl, Davis Bertans and Bryn Forbes. I'm sure at least a couple of them will outperform their raw ability.
Up north, Ujiri is all-in. He needs Kawhi to be healthy, and he needs him to commit. The odds of both happening are very slim. I don't like this move for the Raptors. Sure, LeBron owned them, but that's no longer an issue. You've destroyed your continuity. You're gambling...big time.
In the end, the Spurs are a world-class organization. Kawhi should be truly ashamed of his babyish behavior. But, as always, San Antonio will push forward. They will compete -- night in and night out. They will maximize what they have.
The Raptors, on the other hand, will come up short. In basketball, there will always be the haves and the have nots.
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