Kawhi Leonard has given the Toronto Raptors their first NBA title, destroying another dynasty in the process.
The NBA has a new champion. The Toronto Raptors knocked off the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 to clinch their first-ever NBA title. Even though it was a team effort, the largest amount of credit should go to their stoic superstar, Kawhi Leonard.
He was phenomenal throughout the postseason, having one of the single greatest postseason runs of all time. He finished that great postseason run with a Finals victory against the Golden State Warriors. A franchise which had the goal of winning its fourth championship in five years, cementing themselves as one of the league’s best dynasties.
Kawhi stopped that dead in its tracks. He put on a masterful Finals performance, leading the Raptors to a Finals win. Kawhi adds another championship, another Finals MVP to his name, but he also adds another nickname to his catalog as well. He is now Kawhi Leonard: Dynasty Destroyer.
Cooling off the Heat
Kawhi seems to be on the right team at the right time when it comes to his destruction of possible NBA dynasties. If you remember, back in 2014, the Miami Heat were coming into the NBA Finals with a three-peat on their minds. They made their fourth trip to the Finals in four years with their “big three” of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
There was a sense that this was their last chance to become a dynasty, as questions loomed over the future of that team at the time. James was in the last mandatory year of his contract with Miami, having the ability to opt out once the season was over. No one knew what he wanted to do, but if he was leaving, ending his time with the Heat on a three-peat would be very dynasty-worthy…..but then came Kawhi.
Leonard wasn’t the superstar caliber player he was now in 2014. He was known primarily for his defense, even though his offense was slowly coming along. He was on a Spurs team that had Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker, all on the back-nine of their careers.
Kawhi had the pleasure of guarding LeBron in that series, and some believed his offense would need to come alive if the Spurs had a chance to win. Being that same stoic character, the Klaw proceeded to take down the Heat Dynasty.
Leonard’s offense took center stage in those Finals. He averaged 17.8 points per game, shooting 61-percent from the field and about 58-percent from three. What was more impressive was his stellar defense on King James, as he gave him headaches throughout that series.
In a matter of five games, the Heat’s dreams of a three-peat were over, the possibility of becoming a dynasty was destroyed, and Kawhi won Finals MVP for his coming out party on the NBA’s biggest stage.
LeBron left the Heat and returned to Cleveland, and the rest is history. At 22 years of age, Leonard ended the Heat’s hopes of winning not “not three, not four, not five”… you get the point.
Not so Golden Dynasty
Fast-forward to this year’s Finals and you see yet again, Kawhi coming face to face with another team with aspirations of a three-peat. This time it was the Golden State Warriors. Much like the Heat, the Warriors dominated the NBA. They have made it to five straight Finals, winning three of them.
The storyline was very similar; even though Kevin Durant was injured, this was also the last year of his contract with the Warriors as he has a player option he is likely going to decline. Sharpshooter Klay Thompson is also going to be a free-agent, and he could leave to have a team of his own. The Warriors knew that this was their last shot at cementing their spot as one of the league’s greatest dynasties. Kawhi was not about to let that happen on his watch though.
Kawhi again stepped up to the moment, averaging 28 points, 9.8 rebounds, two blocks, and a steal in the Finals and again playing exceptional defense in big moments. His offense was something to marvel at, getting to his spots and showing strength to finish through contact. He earned another Finals MVP, making him the first person to win the award while representing both the Eastern and Western Conference. He joins LeBron and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players to win Finals MVP for multiple teams.
Many will try to diminish these Finals win because of the injury bug that bit the Warriors hard, but you can’t take away what Kawhi did.
He prevented another three-peat for a team that many thought was unbeatable. He ended another dynasty in the Golden State Warriors and he ended an era at Oracle Arena with champagne and smiles, just not for the home team.
Dynasty Destroyer
Dynasties are hard to come by in any sport, especially the NBA. With many players moving from team to team after a season, it is hard to keep the same core group of players together to build something special.
Both the Heat and the Warriors managed to do this and were on the verge of doing something not a lot of teams are able to do; win an NBA championship three straight times.
Leonard, however, calmly took the challenge of taking on these behemoths of a team and performed well enough to take them down. Not many players (actually, not any player) can say they took down two dynasties in their career. No player can say they did it on two completely different teams except the Klaw. At age 22 and at age 28, Kawhi has managed to upend the runs of two of the league’s best teams of all-time. All without showing a single flash of emotion until the clock hit triple zeros.
He was the go-to man in both instances, shouldering the offensive and defensive loads for his squads. The teams around him were well put together don’t get me wrong, but Kawhi’s efforts were the difference in both series. If he doesn’t put up numbers he did, or play with the intensity he did, both those series would have different outcomes. He knew what he was up against, and he found a way to get the job done, despite the amount of talent both teams had on their rosters.
He stepped up on the game’s biggest stage, in the game’s biggest moments, against the some of the game’s biggest and baddest teams.
He was great in 2014 with the Spurs, and he was legendary in 2019 for the Toronto Raptors. This is a warning to all potential dynasties of the future, do your best to avoid Kawhi Leonard, or you just might witness the power of the NBA’s silent kingslayer.