The principle risk the Toronto Raptors and general manager Masai Ujiri assumed when trading for disgruntled star Kawhi Leonard is if the former Spurs standout will make Toronto his future home.
After a falling out in San Antonio, Leonard was moved to the Raptors last Wednesday for face-of-the-franchise DeMar DeRozan. Leonard, due a little over $20 million in 2018-19, then has a player option for the following season, which he'll most certainly decline to set up a bigger payday. And while many predict Leonard will bolt from Toronto, not everyone is convinced.
According to the San Diego Tribune, someone, " ... who knows Leonard as well as anybody" is singing a different tune when it comes to Leonard's potential future with the Raptors.
"He’s going to fall in love with Toronto – it’s going to happen," the anonymous source told the paper. "He’s not going to leave, I’m telling you."
Leonard would be eligible to sign a five-year, $190 max extension with the Raptors come next summer after declining that player option. If he elects to leave and join a new team, the biggest extension he can sign would be for four years, $141 million, close to $3 million less annually and losing some term.
STONE: Raptors' big trade for Kawhi Leonard is worth risk — even if he doesn't stay in Toronto
The early word on Leonard and his opinion of his new home was not glowing. In the moments leading up to the trade, there were reports Leonard "had no desire to play in Toronto." A source told Sporting News' Sean Deveney the possibility remained that Leonard would sit out games and forfeit salary to get to the finish line that is unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2019.
But in the days that followed, the chatter around Leonard and his feelings for the Raptors began to somewhat warm. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Toronto was growing on Leonard, who was at least intrigued by the idea of playing for a contender, on a team "that could be as good as anybody in the Eastern Conference."
Recent history could have also motivated Ujiri to pursue this trade in spite of the overwhelming sentiment it would leave Toronto with a year of Leonard after parting ways with DeRzoan, a four-time all-star. In the 2017 offseason, the Oklahoma City Thunder acquired Paul George from the Indiana Pacers despite a consensus opinion George would bolt the following summer to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers. Instead, George re-upped for four years with the Thunder, and never even took a free agency meeting with Los Angeles this offseason.