Raptors' Kawhi Leonard booed in return to San Antonio
Kawhi Leonard isn’t known for being the most expressive with his emotions on and off the court, but nevertheless, he continues to dominate the Eastern Conference semi-finals against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Leonard hit yet again another double-double, scoring 21 points with 13 rebounds. It was a team performance for Toronto Tuesday night though, as the Raptors bulldozed the 76ers, beating them by 36. Leonard had a supporting cast Tuesday night, with Pascal Siakam scoring 25 points, Kyle Lowry adding 19 points, 17 for Danny Green, Marc Gasol with 11 and Serge Ibaka scoring 10 points. Things for Leonard are going well on the court, as well as off the court.
Back in 2018, there were negotiation battles with Nike and New Balance for Leonard’s endorsement deal. According to ESPN’s Nick DePaula, New Balance gave “significantly more” than $5 million per year. This amount per season would put Leonard in one of the top-15 endorsement deals in the league.
This year, Leonard released his first signature shoe in February, the New Balance OMN1S. On Monday night, New Balance announced the “Kawhi 2-Way Pack” coming with the original New Balance OMN1S and an added classic 997 running silhouette, reported designed by Leonard himself. The release on Tuesday sold out in under one minute on the Canadian New Balance website, and on the American website almost half an hour later.
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The man who is never seen smiling continues to sell out shoes, despite lacking any extracurricular drama and flamboyant personalities. But he continues to be in the spotlight because of his continual dominant performances.
In his playoff career, Leonard has shot a total 46% from the field and 48% from three. For the most part, these playoffs he has been scoring over 30 points a game with ease. He has also been proving to be just as solid on the defensive end of the floor, recording over seven rebounds a game as well.
Toronto needs just one more win against Philadelphia to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
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