3 Landing spots for Kawhi Leonard in 2019 Free Agency

#2 Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors have just landed Kawhi Leonard in a trade involving their best player in DeRozan

The Toronto Raptors have just landed Kawhi in a trade involving their best player in DeRozan and will be hoping to be higher on this list but there are some ground realities to consider.

Kawhi, according to ESPN's Chris Haynes, had no desire to play in Toronto. This is the fundamental reason that they are not higher on the list.

The reason they are this high on the list is that of the Paul George effect and how they hope they can convince Kawhi to stay here for the long term.

For that to happen, the Raptors need to win and win now. They finished top of the Eastern Conference table last year and that wasn't enough for coach Casey to keep his job. This shows urgency on the part of management and that is a good sign.

Kawhi Leonard will get to play in an international environment, something that he may come to appreciate and with him, the Raptors are a serious threat in the Eastern Conference. Another thing helping them is, of course, the absence of LeBron James.

Kawhi is the best player in the conference and should help them reach the NBA finals if things go well.

The Raptors' system is also a good fit for Kawhi as they have players who can stretch the floor and a good defence. The fact that the Raptors kept both Siakam and Og helps their case tremendously.

Another factor to consider is that the Raptors will be able to offer Kawhi more money than any other team. This was not a point of consideration for him with the Spurs but he cannot keep turning down max contracts.

It remains to be seen if the Raptors' potential success can help them hold on to Kawhi beyond 2019.