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Mark Cuban rips apart Kawhi Leonard’s chances of getting honored by Toronto Raptors

Originally posted on NBA Analysis Network
By Aikansh Chaudhary | Last updated Nov 20, 2025 2:00 PM ET

The 2025-26 version of Kawhi Leonard is a lot different from the one who won the Toronto Raptors an NBA Championship in 2019.

This season, Kawhi Leonard has consistently found himself in the headlines. Initially, the case was due to Leonard’s role in the Aspiration controversy.

Now, that’s largely due to Leonard’s disappointing performance in the handful of games he has played for the Los Angeles Clippers this season.

But before these controversies, Leonard was one of the best players in the league and even helped the Toronto Raptors win their first-ever NBA Championship in franchise history.

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Mark Cuban doesn’t think the Toronto Raptors will honor Kawhi Leonard with a statue

As mentioned earlier, once it’s all said and done, Leonard’s single-season run with the Raptors will likely be the most fond memory of his controversial career.

But does Kawhi deserve a statue outside the Scotiabank Arena? Former Dallas Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban seems annoyed by even the thought of that.

“No. You don’t get a statue if you leave. If you leave on your own accord, you do not get a statue,” Cuban said on the Run Your Race podcast.

When podcast host Theo Pinson suggested that Leonard inspired several young Raptors fans with the 2019 championship run, Cuban countered with other great Canadian players who should be honored.

“But first, they’re going to look at Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander] and they’re going to go down. There are a lot of great Canadian players,” Cuban added.

Mark Cuban thinks Kyle Lowry deserves a statue over Kawhi Leonard

Cuban then explained the reasoning behind his statement, claiming Leonard’s time in Toronto was simply too short to get a statue from the franchise.

“No, can’t do it. Particularly because he was only there a year. Six months… and he would even tell you that, right?” the Mavs minority owner continued.

He concluded, stating: “If you’re going to give one to him, you’ve got to put Kyle Lowry in front.”

Considering Kyle Lowry played a crucial role in the championship run while spending nine years of his career with the Raptors, Cuban’s proposal certainly holds some weight.

As for Leonard, he has bigger things to worry about than getting a statue from the Raptors. For instance, the Clippers star is still injured as the organization struggles to win games in his absence.

This article first appeared on NBA Analysis Network and was syndicated with permission.

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