Fred VanVleet Opens Up on Kawhi Leonard’s Raptors Exit: “His Mind Was Made Up”
Fred VanVleet isn’t one to sugarcoat things. And when it comes to Kawhi Leonard’s departure from the Toronto Raptors after their 2019 championship run, the former Raptor turned Houston Rockets guard made it clear: nobody inside the locker room was caught off guard.
Speaking on the “Hello and Welcome” podcast, VanVleet pulled back the curtain on one of the most memorable one-and-done stints in NBA history. According to him, Leonard’s exit wasn’t a surprise - it was practically written in stone from the moment he arrived.
“He said it from Day 1: ‘I’m not staying here,’” VanVleet recalled. “From Day 1: ‘I don’t know why they traded for me.
I don’t want to be here. I’m not staying here.’”
That kind of honesty might sound jarring, especially considering the Raptors were taking a massive swing by trading for Leonard in the first place. But for VanVleet and the rest of the team, there was no bitterness - just an understanding of who Kawhi was and what he brought to the table.
“Now, Toronto put their best bid in. The city bowed down like we’ve never seen before,” VanVleet continued.
“Yes, for us regular people, we can look at it and say, ‘How could you leave that?’... But his mind was made up.
Kawhi is Kawhi.”
Toronto’s gamble paid off in the biggest way possible. Leonard led the Raptors to their first-ever NBA championship, delivering a postseason for the ages that included iconic moments - none bigger than his buzzer-beater against the Sixers in Game 7. He averaged 30.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game during that playoff run, earning his second Finals MVP and etching his name into Raptors history forever.
But even with confetti still on the floor, Leonard’s eyes were set on home. That summer, he signed a three-year, $103 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers - a move that’s now under league investigation amid allegations the Clippers used a no-show deal with Aspiration, a now-bankrupt sustainability company, to skirt salary cap rules.
VanVleet, meanwhile, stayed in Toronto for four more seasons, evolving from a gritty backup into a full-time starter and earning his first All-Star nod in 2022. In July 2023, he signed a three-year, $130 million contract with the Rockets - a massive payday for the undrafted guard, and one he credits in part to Leonard’s impact on that 2019 title team.
“I thank him eternally for helping us win a championship and carrying us to a moment to where I can be solidified and go on to make a ton of money,” VanVleet said. “We’re forever indebted to him for that.”
“But yes, you could look back and say, ‘Ooh, we wish he would have did this, wish he would've did that,’ but I’m just thankful we got the job done. He changed a lot of people’s lives.”
VanVleet is currently sidelined with a torn ACL suffered in the preseason, but his reflections on that championship season - and Leonard’s brief but unforgettable tenure in Toronto - serve as a reminder of just how special that 2018-19 run was.
Kawhi may have been a rental, but what he delivered was priceless.