When Kawhi Leonard joined the Los Angeles Clippers, he was expected to make the team an immediate contender, but their title aspirations fell short, as they were sent home by the Nuggets in seven games.
The disappointing ending begged the question: would Kawhi have been better off staying with the Toronto Raptors? Kawhi apparently did not think so last offseason, as he reportedly told the Raptors that he didn’t think they were good enough to repeat.
In a way, you can see what Kawhi was probably thinking when he dismissed the very team he had just won a championship with. After all, Kawhi needed to deliver a historically great postseason, including a series-winning shot against the 76ers, for the Raptors to beat the hobbled Warriors.
On paper, he probably thought that teaming up with a player of Paul Geroge’s caliber with a supporting cast of Lou Williams, Montrez Harrell and Patrick Beverley would be an upgrade. But in reality, it looks like both the Raptors and Kawhi are worse off without each other, as neither could even make it to the Conference Finals this season.
But as the Clippers start looking ahead to next season, with even more pressure than they had this year to win it all, Kawhi may find himself wondering if he made a mistake leaving Toronto. But even if he fantasizes about leaving the Clippers to rejoin the Raptors, if he really did tell them they weren’t good enough to win, he may have burned that bridge for good.
