I was all set to write a post about the NBA. It was going to be about how the Warriors won 4 titles in 5 years, and the one year they didn't win was the year they won 73 games and were up 3-1 in the Finals. I was then going to make a point how the Warriors are obviously incredible, but also that you have to give LeBron a ton of credit for being able to interrupt that dynasty to bring a title to Cleveland of all places.
But thanks to Toronto, that's not the post I'm writing today.
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Let's look back at how the Raptors did it. In the first round, they dropped their first game to the Magic at home before reeling off four straight.
The Raptors trailed the 76ers 2-1 in the next round. In Game 7, with the game on the line, Kawhi got the ball and did this.
His shot hit the rim, he crouched, and still had time to wait for the ball to go in.
And then in the next round, the #1 Milwaukee was up 2-0. The Warriors were in the process of sweeping Portland so everyone was already talking about if they needed Durant back to beat Giannis in the Finals. And then the Raptors won 4 straight.
Then the Raptors beat the Warriors in 6. 3-0 at Oracle. They closed that arena for good by owning it. They trailed in every playoff series except the Finals.
And now the Raptors have their first title in franchise history.
For the first time in history, the NBA Champion is not from the United States.
A Canadian team has won the World Series and NBA title more recently than the Stanley Cup.
Kawhi has a Finals MVP in multiple countries, which is a record that is unlikely to be matched anytime soon.
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Since the Spurs and Wade have retired, the list of active players with multiple titles is short.
There's Curry-Iggy-Draymond-Klay-Livingston with 3.
There's LeBron with 3.
Durant with 2.
Kawhi and Green with 2.
(And it's hard to tell because there's not a great tool out there that has active filters, but I don't think there's that many more stars that I'm missing.)
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And after all that, I have to remind everyone how fragile these narratives are. How things outside of your control affect your narrative all the time. At the end of the game, Curry had a good look to win. Klay is out with a torn ACL and Durant is out with a torn achilles. But Curry's shot affects their ring totals and legacies. And times that times a million, with all the plays and transactions and injuries.
No title should have an asterisk. But in a way, every title could have one because of all the little things outside your control that alter your legacy. (When you look back at Brady, if you change 3 plays of things outside Brady's control (Dee Ford offsides, Falcons sack in 28-3, Seahawks passing from the 1) the Patriots could be 0-6 in the Super Bowl since 2004. And then if you change 3 in the other direction, the Patriots could be 9-0 including 19-0. All without changing a thing from Brady's actual play. That's the fragileness that I'm talking about. Do everything the same and you might win 6 Super Bowls in or you might win zero.
Klay and Durant played at an All-Star level this year. But whether or not they get a ring was outside their control.
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