TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 12: DeMar DeRozan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs hugs Kyle Lowry #7 of the Toronto Raptors (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
The Toronto Raptors and San Antonio Spurs are two franchises that will remain forever intertwined, as the Kawhi Leonard trade that brought Toronto their first championship in franchise history also sent the franchise’s all-time leading scorer in DeMar DeRozan to San Antonio as collateral. This broke up his partnership with Kyle Lowry.
While DeRozan missed out on getting his championship ring, he remains a beloved figure in Canada, as he is one of the few high Raptors draft picks who chose to re-sign in Toronto and make a name for himself here instead of being tempted by an offer to potentially return to the States.