The Toronto Raptors will be the final team to meet with Kawhi Leonard before he chooses his destination. But does that matter?
This is an incredibly important summer for the Toronto Raptors. After winning the first tile in franchise history, they are now on the precipice of potentially re-signing the most dominant player to ever don their jersey, Kawhi Leonard.
But Leonard has a list of potential suitors and will be taking meetings with four different teams. The Raptors will be last making their pitch to Kawhi Leonard in an attempt to convince him to stay. The order of these meetings could be impactful.
Meeting last may be meaningless:
There is a history in the NBA of analyzing important meetings. Last season, the biggest free agent was LeBron James. He and his camp met with multiple teams before swiftly deciding to sign a four-year contract. The last of those meetings was with the Philadelphia 76ers.
James decided to join the Los Angeles Lakers, which in itself can be used as evidence that presenting last is meaningless to the recruitment process.
That final meeting was so insignificant that James himself did not attend. Instead, he sent his agent, Rich Paul. Later that same day, James and his camp announced their decision to join the Lakers. Realistically, this made the 76ers encounter more of a courtesy than a consideration.
One of the most famous pitches to sway a free agent came in the summer of 2016. Free agency began shortly after the Golden State Warriors blew a three-to-one lead in the NBA Finals to James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Warriors responded by convincing the top unrestricted free agent, Kevin Durant, to join their squad.
Durant had a full schedule to meet with suitors. The process began with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He then met with the Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers, followed by the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics. His final meeting was with the Miami Heat.
Once again, the final pitch did not result in the club getting their man. Durant was swayed by the Hampton’s Five and chose the Warriors. In this case, it was the “Strength in Numbers” sales package that appealed to KD. It didn’t matter that he met with the Warriors early in his schedule. It was their message that resonated most, not their timing.
It benefits the Raptors to have the last word:
Leonard will have the red carpet rolled out for him everywhere he goes. This is the opportunity for every interested team to try to sell themselves on their unique reasons why they stand out. It’s also the chance for each of them to make their own grandiose promises.
Leonard himself may have his own demands for his future employers. So long as it does not break NBA rules, teams will be happy to appease.
For the Raptors, they are in the advantageous position of not just putting their own pitch together but also asking about the previous meetings. By inquiring about the promises made and the requests accepted, the Raptors could not only match but in some cases exceed those offers.
There is no offer that a team can put forward that the Raptors would decline. While that could be said for the rest of the field, they won’t have the chance to first accept terms offered by another team and then make their own pitch. In their meeting, Masai Ujiri and Bobby Webster will also remind Leonard why he loved playing in Toronto.
The only thing that the Raptors cannot offer is close proximity to sunny California beaches. If geographical location is what ultimately sways the NBA Finals MVP to ply his trade for a new team, then it never mattered which order the meetings were arranged.
Hopefully, at the end of this process, Leonard picks the Raptors and together they pick up right where they left off.