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After an exciting back and forth affair that saw Kawhi Leonard put on a herculean effort. It only made sense that the Raptors hero would put the final nail in the coffin for the Philadelphia 76ers. Drilling an insane buzzer beater that hit every part of the rim before falling, Leonard sent Toronto on to the next round.
WATCH: Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard Drills Insane Buzzer Beating, Game Winner Seal Game Seven Video
Leonard would redeem himself after missing an easy free throw that kept the door open for Philadelphia to make a run to tie the game. However, Leonard, as he has all playoffs, would put the Raptors on his back to hit one of the most impressive game seven, game-winners of all time. This marks the second series-winning buzzer-beater of the playoffs, with the first coming courtesy of Damian Lillard in the first round against the Thunder.
With the Raptors now moving on to face the Milwaukee Bucks, they need their basketball robot to keep his hot streak going as they face down one of the most dangerous teams in the NBA. With otherworldly basketball talent Giannis Antetokuonmpo surrounded by an elite crop of sharpshooters, the Bucks are a potent and versatile offense. While it is unclear if the Raptors will deploy Kawhi on Giannis just yet, his ability to either lock down Giannis or adequately provide help defense (while being able to close out on his man) is going to be a big X-factor moving forward.
Should the Raptors find their way through the Bucks, they face the winner of the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers. The Warriors are back to back defending champions while the Blazers are playing some inspired basketball behind the stellar play of backcourt duo Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. While the Warriors are inarguably the most talented team left standing (even without Durant or Boogie), the fact that both are expected to return by the finals is terrifying news for the Raptors and the rest of the league.
Either way, moving forward the road only gets tougher for Kawhi Leonard and the Toronto Raptors.
Kawhi Leonard Game Seven Stats
Kawhi had a monster showing in game seven. While he didn’t have his most efficient outing, in a game where buckets were tough to come by, Leonard put the team on his back and picked up an astounding 41, along with the game winner. Leonard would also chip in eight rebounds and three assists to go along with three steals.
Leonard nearly shouldered half of the Raptor’s scoring load in game seven and outside of Serge Ibaka, was just about the only thing going for the offense. Kyle Lowry and Pascal Siakam also had big nights, they just didn’t show up in the stat sheet. Making a number of small plays throughout the game that either were big momentum shifters or small nuanced aspects that don’t show up in the box score, Lowry and Siakam both stepped up when their offensive games weren’t at their best.
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