If the Toronto Raptors wanted to take their roster to the next level this season, they would have to make a splash. It’s something that Masai Ujiri is capable of doing – showing his wherewithal last season to trade for both Kawhi Leonard and Marc Gasol.
Those trades paid off and the Toronto Raptors hit the big time, winning their first-ever Larry O’Brien trophy in their first appearance in an NBA Finals setting. Repeating that this season, without Leonard, would prove to be a difficult and seemingly impossible task. But it wasn’t out the realms of possibility.