Kawhi is in the 6ix to pick up more than his 2018-19 championship ring on Wednesday night, as his Los Angeles Clippers take a trip up north to battle with the upstart Toronto Raptors at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.
In what was easily one of the most improbable couple of NBA offseasons in NBA history, the summer of 2018 saw then disgruntled Spurs All-Star Kawhi Leonard be dealt to Toronto in exchange for long-tenured homegrown talent in Demar DeRozan. It was a match made in heaven, and 2018 was a year Canadiens will keep in their hearts so long as they all shall live.
Last year ended on the most sugary of notes, concluding in an upset win over the Dynastic Golden State Warriors in a contentious six-game NBA Finals series where the Raptors would come out on top to claim their franchise’s first world championship (and emphasis on “World” – they were the first NBA franchise to raise a banner outside of the United States).
And it was all in part to some of the legendary performances and Heroics Leonard capitalized in producing for the Torontonians. But the truth was, as fans came to grips with, was that Kawhi felt and was misplaced, literally, in a foreign country some thousand miles from his polaric opposite warm home in California. He wanted to return home on his own terms and was granted the opportunity.
To say Kawhi’s emotional return tonight won’t display any dry eyes will be an understatement, so don’t expect the otherwise kind Canadians to boo and lament the only Finals MVP in their franchise’s 24-year history in the Scotiabank Arena tonight as team introductions, and more specifically Leonard’s receiving of his championship ring, commence.
As for tonight’s matchup, we’ll see a Toronto team that’s managed to scrape out a noteworthy 16-7 record through the season’s first month duel with a full-fledged, full-frontal attack from one of the league’s most complete and intimidating squads in the 18-7 Los Angeles Clippers.
This won’t be a trouncing victory or an easy road win for LA. Not by a long shot. Pascal Siakam is playing at an All-NBA level and has been doing so for just about the entire season, averaging nearly 25 points per game and 8 rebounds while shooting the three-ball at a respectable and improving 36.4 percent. His overall field goal percentage at 45.8 percent has steadily increased and will probably continue to rise now with a fully healthy starting five back on the floor with the Cameroonian.
The Raptors had lost three games in a row before their narrow, ugly victory over the Bulls this past Monday night, which was unusual, considering that they’ve been a great team all season. It was probably a case of just one of those nights, but aside from that and their uncharacteristic loss on the road against Philly in not being able to complete their 18-point comeback, the Raptors are still an outstanding defensive team, bolstered by the size of length of OG Anunoby with Pascal Siakam on the perimeter and the equanimity and toughness of Kyle Lowry and Fred Van Vleet at the point of attack.
Their offense has sputtered a little of late with a blowout loss to the visiting Rockets a week ago but remains dangerous with Lowry still at the helms of the offense. Their bench, too, is unpredictably dangerous, with seasoned veterans like arduous shot-blocker Serge Ibaka and team-dubbed “Hustle Man Chap” Rondae Hollis-Jefferson capable of impacting a game on both ends.
They haven’t backed down from anyone, preparing for this night since it’ll probably be the most substantial night so far this season. It’s a measuring stick of sorts to see just how close the Raptors are to being taken seriously as a title defender since the Bucks walked all over the PG-and-Kawhi-led Clips just nights before in a 28-point thrashing on their home floor in Milwaukee.
If they’re to follow in the footsteps of the Eastern rival, they’ll have to beat their old “Fun Guy” who has some serious help that is well superior to the teammates he had in Toronto. Leonard struggled mightily in their loss to Milwaukee, only scoring 17 points in a game that he was to go off in. His numbers this year have still been anything off-putting, scoring 25 points a game off 45 percent shooting.
The Clippers are 2-1 through the first half of their road trip and have bounced back strong from their blowout loss at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks with two nice (but expected) victories against the Wizards and Pacers. Paul George has been smoking hot, torching his former Pacers squad from beyond the arc while locking down defensively.
Their bench? Not so much. Lou Williams looked as if he caught a cold, shooting an icy 2-19 from the field against Indy. Montrezl Harrell has been superb coming off the bench in Doc Rivers’ rotation, showing off his growing game that’s graduated from just the low block and a tight handle that’s eye-opening for any big man to display.
This one’s gonna be good, so make sure you don’t miss it on ESPN at 7 p.m ET, live on ESPN as part of their weekly Wednesday doubleheader.
