DeMar DeRozan Does Not Hold Back His Thoughts on Raptors' 2019 Championship

The Toronto Raptors' 2019 NBA championship is largely attributed to one trade. Before the start of the season, long-time Toronto star DeMar DeRozan was traded to the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard. Leonard became the driving force behind Toronto's legendary playoff run.

Many point to Leonard as the main reason why the Raptors won that championship, and for good reason. However, DeRozan believes that had he been in that position, they could have won the chip as well.

DeRozan took this position during an interview with Stephen A. Smith on First Take. He says that LeBron was really the only player the Raptors couldn't beat back then, so his departure for LA would have made it easier for them.

During that 2019 championship run, Leonard averaged 30.5 points per game on 61.9% true shooting, along with 9.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. The then-Raptors star had many memorable moments, including his iconic Game 7 game-winner over the Philadelphia 76ers to send them to the Conference Finals.

Leonard wasn't the only reason for their success; the Raptors had an elite supporting cast behind him, after all. Still, Leonard's individual brilliance was otherworldly that year. Yet, the Raptors still went seven games against the 76ers and went down 0-2 against the Milwaukee Bucks in the Conference Finals.

Had DeRozan been put in that scenario, could he have powered the Raptors through these tough series? We can never be sure, but it's a tough ask for any player to replicate what Leonard did for Toronto in that series.

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