Unlike most Raptors fans, Nick Nurse wasn’t asleep when he discovered the news of Kawhi Leonard’s decision to sign with the Clippers. In fact, you probably couldn’t guess in 100 years what exactly he was doing on that memorable Friday night.
ESPN The Jump’s Rachel Nichols reported on her Twitter account that she was able to catch up with Nurse, who told her he was watching a Prince impersonator at the Tropicana when he received the text about it. According to Nichols, the head coach read the message, shrugged, and decided to stay and enjoy the rest of the show.
Don’t be mistaken though; the decision definitely lit a fire in Nurse. While discussing Leonard’s departure from Toronto with the media, he raved about his experience coaching the ‘The Klaw’ before reminding everyone that his Raps now need to “go kick his a**.”
Now without Leonard and DeMar DeRozan, Nurse will be tasked with leading the Raptors back to the postseason with Kyle Lowry and Pascal Siakam at the lead. His reaction may come as a surprise to some but hey, it’d probably be that tough to get upset just weeks after capturing a franchise its first championship.
(H/T Rachel Nichols)
