A blockbuster trade between the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors is reportedly in the process of being finalized. In the said deal, a swap of stars involving Kawhi Leonard and DeMar DeRozan is front and center.
While this could finally put an end to a dragging drama in San Antonio, things are bound to become messy over in Toronto. In Adrian Wojnarowski and Chris Haynes' ESPN report, it appears that the team from north of the border had lied to its star player.
Sources close to DeRozan told ESPN that DeRozan met with Toronto brass in Las Vegas during summer league and was told he would not be traded.
It's hard to imagine the emotions that are swirling through DeRozan on the heels of the trade report. The All-Star guard has had his battles with depression and this sudden turn of event doesn't help soothe any turbulence within himself.
On the bigger picture, this paints a bad image for the Raptors front office. They're already in a non-prime destination for free agents and they just made things more difficult for them in the future when trying to lure marquee names.
The business part of the NBA is full of smokescreens, but there has to be a level of trust that's established between a team and its players, even more so with its top moneymakers. This only gives the Raptors organization a bad rap that could make players and agents decide to stay away from the team moving forward.
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