Raptors GM Bobby Webster on keeping Kawhi: ‘He knows who we are’

Raptors GM Bobby Webster says there’s no real stress or anxiety in convincing Kawhi Leonard to re-sign in Toronto, says “he knows who we are,” and “it’s almost a complete respect for him to make the best decision for himself.”

“He Stay” or won’t he?

That is the question plaguing the minds of every Toronto Raptors fan in regards to Kawhi Leonard and his pending unrestricted free agency.

But while the ticking clock to the start of the NBA’s free agent moratorium period seems to cause fans constant consternation with each passing hour, Raptors general manager Bobby Webster seems as cool and confident, as anyone could be, about his team’s chances to bring back the Finals MVP for at least one more season.

“I wouldn’t call it stress or anxiety,” said Webster on Sportsnet 590 the FAN Thursday morning. “It’s almost a complete respect for him to make the best decision for himself.”

 
Raptors GM: We want Kawhi to make the best decision for himself & his loved ones
June 27 2019
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This self-assurance Webster conveyed appears to come from the fact the Raptors traded for Leonard nearly a year ago to the date and that both sides have now become quite familiar with one another.

“I think he knows who we are and we’ll obviously have a chance to sit down and talk about it again,” Webster said. “But he knows who we are and I think that’s the benefit of doing the deal a year early, to have that opportunity for him to come to this city, come to this organization and get a sense of who we were.”

It also behooves the Raptors that they won the franchise’s first-ever championship in that one season, a moment that has made Leonard a Toronto and Canada-wide sporting hero.

“It fortunately worked out for us as far as winning a championship and that’s the part that you can never predict as far as how the team would’ve played out,” said Webster.

Webster, Raptors president Masai Ujiri and Co. are expected to meet with Leonard sometime during the NBA’s moratorium period, which begins this Sunday at 6 p.m. ET and finishes July 6 at 12 p.m. ET. It’s a meeting Webster expects will go well.

“He knows who we are, we know who he is.”

You can listen to Webster’s entire radio appearance using the radio player found above in this post where he talks, among other topics, about Marc Gasol’s impact after his trade-deadline acquisition and the possibility of bringing back Vince Carter for his final season.

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