In a one-on-one with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, Sacramento Kings star DeMar DeRozan made a shocking proclamation. Asked by Smith whether the Toronto Raptors —who he played for during the first nine seasons of his career —would’ve won a championship had they not traded him for Kawhi Leonard, the six-time All-Star responded in the affirmative.
Former Raptors Cornerstone DeMar DeRozan Makes Bold Kawhi Leonard Claim
“Yeah,” DeRozan says. “Never to discredit those guys; they won it, they deserve it. I finally had got to a point to where I was happy for them. But, for sure, I definitely feel like that.”
“The only person we couldn’t beat was LeBron (James),” he recalls. “That’s just what it was, and I felt off the year we had before, we just needed one more piece to kind of push us over the top. That piece came to be LeBron going to the West and I didn’t get the opportunity to see what would’ve happened.”
DeMar DeRozan believes he would have won a championship with the Raptors if the Kawhi Leonard trade never happened:
“I have no doubt in my mind the same outcome would have happened.”
[via @FirstTake ] pic.twitter.com/iRxW2OvdVc
— BASKETBALL ON 𝕏 (@BASKETBALLonX) September 11, 2024
“But (having) the utmost confidence in myself, I have no doubt in my mind the same outcome would’ve happened.”
Conflicting Statements?
DeRozan has spoke on the Raptors’ inability to get past James before. Last month, he told the Club 520 Podcast that James “was impossible to beat” during his second stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In fact, he went as far as to say that there was nothing Toronto could’ve done to get past James.
Demar Derozan claims Lebron was impossible to beat back when he was with the Raptors pic.twitter.com/vploUgsZQI
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On the one hand, DeRozan doubling down on James’s dominance gives that take more life. On the other hand, his comments on the Club 520 Podcast kind of run counter to his response to Smith, as he told the ESPN pundit that he thought the Raptors could’ve defeated James if they had another weapon.
The question then becomes whether DeRozan’s belief that Toronto would’ve won without the trade for Leonard has merit.
Fair or Foul?
Ultimately, it’s fair for DeRozan to believe the Raptors would’ve made to the NBA Finals without Leonard. In the 2016 NBA Playoffs, he managed to lead Toronto to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they fell to the Cavs in six games. Based on that series, he and his supporting cast may have had enough for a Finals berth.
However, Kyle Lowry’s steady decline makes it possible that they never got that chance. Furthermore, in the Raptors’ championship season, Toronto was ranked eighth in made 3-pointers per game (12.4) and sixth in 3-point percentage (.366). It was the only time since James left the Miami Heat that the Raptors were in the top-10 of both categories.
The defense was also elevated in Leonard’s brief tenure. Toronto was a strong defensive team before his arrival, but that was in spite of DeRozan’s deficiencies at that end. Leonard, a two-time Defensive Player of the Year, was a two-way star. Conversely, DeRozan was an offensive specialist.
In a close series like one the Raptors and Warriors played, those marginal advantages become magnified.
Still, it’s worth noting that DeRozan would’ve likely played for Toronto much longer. As James and the Golden State Warriors entered the twilight of their prime, the league had parity. So, while the Raptors may not have won immediately after James went West, it could’ve happened eventually.
