If you’re a Toronto Raptors fan, last summer was bittersweet. You lost your fan favorite team leading scorer DeMar DeRozen & got Champion 2-Way Players Kawhi Leonard & Danny Green. You also witnessed Dwayne Casey Win NBA’s 2018 Coach Of The Year & within days get fired from the team he helped rebuild in the post-Chris Bosh Era. Fast forward to the 2018-2019 season, the Raptors (43-16, #2 in the East) are only 1 game behind Giannis Antetokounmpo & the Milwaukee Bucks (43-14, #1 in the East), Head Coach Nick Nurse made the transition from Assistant Coach to Head Coach feel almost seamless & at the end of the Trade Deadline the Raptors traded Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, C.J. Miles and a 2024 second-round pick for Superstar Center Marc Gasol. In my opinion, the team is aware that Kawhi is a “1 Year Rental” which means that if he doesn’t feel that the Raptors can win a Championship this season, he will leave in Free Agency this summer as an Unrestricted Free Agent. This means that the Raptors have to make major moves to compete in a very competitive, LeBron-Free Eastern Conference. The 2019 NBA Playoffs will determine the fate of this current Toronto Raptors roster. If they make it past the 1st & 2nd Round, Kawhi might sign an extension and stay long term. If they don’t, this franchise will not only lose a champion leader but will ultimately have to blow up the roster and rebuild from scratch. Current Mood In The 6: Championship or Bust.
