5 reasons the Toronto Raptors won the 2019 NBA Finals

3. Raptors get huge lift from supporting cast

Kawhi Leonard is unequivocally the best player on the Raptors’ roster. However, during the postseason, as well as this Finals series, multiple players stepped up at different times.

For starters, let’s begin with Pascal Siakam. He kicked off this NBA Finals with a 32-point outburst in the series opener.

For obvious reasons, no one expected Siakam to play that well the rest of the way. But he did score at least 18 points in four of the six games and he averaged 19.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per outing on 50.3 percent shooting from the field.

Marc Gasol had an impact, scoring at least 15 points in three of the six Finals games. Serge Ibaka, who scored a combined total of 18 points in Games 1-3, chipped in 20, 15 and 15 points, respectively, in Games 4-6.

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Reserve guard Fred VanVleet reached double figures five times in the Finals, including a 22-point showing in the series finale.

Last, but certainly not least, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Kyle Lowry. His struggles in postseason competition have been well documented, but he silenced his critics in Game 6. Not only did he score 26 points, but he also handed out 10 assists and pulled down seven rebounds.

So again, while Leonard is the best player on the team, the Raptors don’t make it this far without timely contributions from his teammates.