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2019 NBA free agency: Ranking Kawhi Leonard’s best potential landing spots

By Daniel Lubofsky

TORONTO, ONTARIO - JUNE 10: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors reacts in the first half against the Golden State Warriors during Game Five of the 2019 NBA Finals at Scotiabank Arena on June 10, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - JUNE 10: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the Toronto Raptors reacts in the first half against the Golden State Warriors during Game Five of the 2019 NBA Finals at Scotiabank Arena on June 10, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Matteo Marchi/Getty Images)
(Photo by Matteo Marchi/Getty Images) /

Brooklyn Nets

The Brooklyn Nets were arguably the biggest surprise team of the 2018-19 season. After winning an average of 23 games over the last three years, they burst onto the scene with 42 wins and a playoff appearance, where they succumbed to the Philadelphia 76ers in five games.

Armed with restricted free agent and All-Star D’Angelo Russell, general manager Sean Marks has done a phenomenal job in acquiring young and unnoticed potential. The Nets don’t have a lot of recognizable names, but they play hard and together, and compete on a nightly basis.

For as well as Brooklyn’s managed since its laughable 2013 draft-day trade, it still doesn’t have the cache of the Knicks brand and Madison Square Garden. When it comes to a guy like Kawhi Leonard, that lack of attention could wind up working in their favor when it comes time to make a sales pitch.

Leonard is a man of few words and even fewer emotions both on and off the court. He prefers not to draw a crowd to himself and doesn’t seem to care about the fame that comes with his level of all-worldly talent.

Should he desire a flashier market, the borough of Brooklyn provides all the opportunities of choosing the Knicks without all the pressure of delivering a championship to a title-craving fanbase. Kawhi can simply go to work and come home without having to deal with the hysteria of a mass media.

The Nets can opt to re-sign Russell or let him walk in pursuit of a bigger name to pair with Leonard. They’ve taken a lot of flak for what they aren’t in comparison to their New York counterpart. That lack of glitz and glamor may be exactly what’s needed to attract as unique a personality as Kawhi to Brooklyn.