TORONTO — Kawhi Leonard‘s buzzer-beater on Sunday night is widely regarded as the greatest moment in Toronto Raptors history. But where does the shot that gave the Raptors a win over the visiting Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their second-playoff series rank all time among sporting moments for Toronto professional teams? Of course, the argument could go on forever. But in a city that hasn’t tasted nearly as much playoff success as many North American counterparts, Leonard’s shot certainly joins a short list. Here’s a recap of game-changing, successful plays for Toronto pro teams in sudden-death or close-out playoff contests: 1951: BILL BARILKO’S STANLEY CUP WINNER Barilko’s diving backhander in overtime of Game 5 beat Montreal Canadiens goalie Gerry McNeill to give the Maple Leafs a 3-2 win at Maple Leaf Gardens. It was the last game Barilko ever played. That summer, Barilko died in a plane crash after a fishing trip, though the wreckage of the crash wasn’t found until 1962. The Tragically Hip re-told the famous story in their song "Fifty Mission Cap." "Bill Barilko disappeared that summer," the song says. "He was on a fishing trip. The last goal he ever scored won the Leafs the Cup. They didn’t win another ’til 1962, the year he was discovered." 1991: RAGHIB (ROCKET) ISMAIL’S KICKOFF RETURN With the Calgary Stampeders mounting a charge and trailing by one in the Grey Cup in Winnipeg, the Argonauts’ marquee free agent signing delivered in a big way. Ismail’s 87-yard kickoff return in the fourth quarter gave the Argos some much-needed breathing room on the way to victory on a frigid day. One fan threw a beer can on the field that just missed hitting Ismail before he reached the end zone. The Rocket was signed by the high-profile Argos ownership group of Bruce McNall, Wayne Gretzky and John Candy prior to the ’91 season, keeping the projected first overall NFL draft pick out of that league. The former Notre Dame star played two years with the Argos before heading to the NFL’s Los Angeles Raiders. 1993: NIKOLAI BORSCHEVSKY’S DEFLECTION In overtime of Game 7 of a first-round series against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena, Borschevsky headed to the net. Leafs star Doug Gilmour fed a pass to Bob Rouse, whose shot was tipped past Red Wings goalie Tim Cheveldae by the diminutive Russian rookie to give Toronto the upset. "This has been an unbelievable turn of events," legendary broadcaster Bob Cole said. "The Leafs march on and the Red Wings have been eliminated." Barely speaking any English at the time, Borschevsky was asked what he thought afterward by Ron MacLean. "Oh, unbelievable," Borschevsky said. The Leafs fell one win short of a spot in the Stanley Cup final that year, losing to the Los Angeles Kings in Game 7 of the Campbell Conference final. 1993: JOE CARTER’S WORLD SERIES WALKOFF With Philadelphia Phillies closer Mitch Williams on the mound, two men on and the Blue Jays trailing by one at the then-SkyDome, the stage was set for Carter’s heroics in Game 6 of the World Series. On a 2-2 pitch, Carter connected, drilling it over the left-field fence for a championship-winning shot, sending the Toronto crowd into a frenzy. "Touch ’em all Joe, you’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life," late Blue Jays radio broadcaster Tom Cheek bellowed as Carter rounded the bases, giving Toronto back-to-back World Series titles. 2015: JOSE BAUTISTA’S BAT-FLIP HOME RUN In what is considered one of the wildest innings in baseball history, Bautista notched the crushing blow for the Blue Jays in the fifth and final game of an AL division series against the Texas Rangers. Bautista’s three-run homer off Rangers’ Sam Dyson in the seventh inning broke a 3-3 tie, sending the Jays on to victory at the Rogers Centre. The Rangers had taken the lead in the top of the seventh when catcher Russell Martin’s throw back to the mound after a pitch hit Shin-Soo Choo’s bat, allowing Rougned Odor to race home from third. Fans littered the field with debris after an original dead-ball call was overturned. But then Texas made three consecutive errors in the bottom of the seventh, opening the door for Bautista. The outfielder flipped his bat after the blast, causing tempers to flare and creating an epic scene in Toronto as the Blue Jays won their first playoff series since Carter’s home run. "I can’t really remember what was going through my mind, to be honest with you, after I made contact," Bautista said of the bat flip. "I didn’t plan anything I did. … I knew I did something great for the team at the moment of impact." 2016: EDWIN ENCARNACION’S WILD-CARD WALKOFF With the roof open on an unseasonably warm October evening in Toronto, Blue Jays slugger Encarnacion produced the biggest home run of his time in Toronto in the AL wild-card game. In the bottom of the 11th, Encarnacion crushed a Ubaldo Jimenez offering way over the wall in left to give Toronto a 5-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles at the Rogers Centre. "Hard to put into words," said Toronto starter Marcus Stroman. "Chills, excitement, I kind of blacked out for a second. Unbelievable. Eddie has been clutch for us all year." The win came after a bizarre scene in which a fan tossed a beer can at Baltimore outfielder Hyun-soo Kim as he made a catch, leading to plenty of anger in the Orioles dugout and an eventual charge by police for mischief. 2017: JOZY ALTIDORE’S MLS CUP GOAL One year after losing in the MLS Cup against Seattle, Toronto FC got another shot at the Sounders at BMO Field. Two of Toronto’s big-name players hooked up for what turned out to be the winner. Sebastian Giovinco split the defence with a pass and Altidore chipped the ball over an onrushing Stefan Frei to give Toronto a 1-0 lead in the 67th minute. Toronto added another goal in injury time to seal its first MLS title in franchise history.<doc-sep>It was the shot seen around the world. Kawhi Leonard’s buzzer-beating basket took what felt like an eternity to land. Four bounces — and a whole lot of suspense — later, the ball dropped, and the Toronto Raptors won the game and series. Toronto Star photographers Rick Madonik and Steve Russell had a first-hand look at the play, capturing the moments leading up to, and immediately after, the shot that shook the city and basketball world. The now-iconic photo of Leonard — tongue out, crouching in anticipation — Joel Embiid and the Raptors bench watching the play unfold has been shared widely among fans, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Forbes and even Toronto’s very own Drake. The Instagram post of Madonik’s photo on Drake’s page has earned more than a million likes, whereas the Sports Illustrated post got about 25,000. Here’s how the franchise-defining moment unfolded: Leonard stumbles back after taking the shot with mere milliseconds to go. He crouches, watching as the ball bounces on the rim. Embiid, left, desperately hopes for a non-bucket, as Raptors teammate Jordan Loyd readies himself to explode in excitement. For Madonik, stationed far away from the action high up in Scotiabank Arena, there was only one question running through his mind. “What’s taking so long?” He added: “It just seemed to take forever.” On the floor, Steve Russell had a different vantage point. Leonard had just taken the shot. The arena goes silent. Everyone stares at the basket. The usually reserved Leonard erupts. The Raptors bench mobs him. The Raptors win, and the arena descends into pandemonium. Philadelphia 76ers centre Joel Embiid watches from the corner as Toronto Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard squats down and sticks out his tongue waiting for the ball to drop for Raptors to win. The photo has been shared widely on social media. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... For the Philadelphia 76ers, Embiid’s face says it all: complete disbelief. The seven-foot-two big man was the one defending Leonard before he made the improbable bucket. Even OG Anunoby can’t believe it. Here Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka cheer after Leonard makes The Shot. Jimmy Butler, left, can’t wait to get out of their way. Ahead of the game there were many parallels made between this Game 7 and the Raptors’ Game 7 in 2001, which was also against the Sixers and what ultimately decided who faced the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference finals. In the final seconds of the 2001 game, Vince Carter tried to hit a buzzer-beater to win it, and failed. Leonard did not. Since the photo went viral, Madonik says he’s “pretty happy” with it. “It’s a really nice picture for that game, for that moment,” he said. “I think time will tell — if they manage to get it together and win the whole thing, then the picture stands.” Follow the Toronto Star on social media: JS Justin Smirlies is a digital producer on the Toronto Star web desk. You can reach him at jsmirlies@thestar.ca Read more about:<doc-sep>Some people will tell you Kawhi Leonard was built in a lab; that for his first three years in San Antonio he would do drills, endless drills, with coaches on his own, but would be told, if you try this in a game, we will bench your ass. It helped explain why, when he got a bigger role, he seemed something close to fully formed. By the time he got to Toronto, Kawhi was a superstar. On Sunday night, at the very end of a draining, punishing Game 7, at the end of a hard, physical series, Kawhi was dribbling hard towards the right corner of the floor, and everyone in the building was looking at him, and seven-foot Goliath Joel Embiid was chasing him, and Kawhi sent the ball up. Tie game. Time gone. It hung in the air. Veronica Majewski and her sister were in the same place they always were: at the high tables across from the bar in a St. Louis Bar & Grill on Bloor that is a local hangout, and where they and her Trinidadian friend Alex — as Veronica says, “I bear the weight of being singularly responsible for ruining her life, since I am the one that turned her into a fan of all our stupid teams” — watch every game in the same place, every time. But it was stressful, and it all seemed to be falling apart again, and Veronica and her sister went outside to smoke. By the time they were done, the bar was suddenly too full to get back in, but it was coming down to the end. So they stood in the rain, watching through the window. When the ball dropped, they jumped into a hug, and high-fived every stranger. Every one. Meanwhile, Nicholas Carter was working the Mother’s Day shift at Cava restaurant in midtown, and as a patron went to pay, he was streaming the game, and people stopped to watch. The chef was, too. He told the chef, “If they win, you pretend to accidentally break a glass.” And as it happened, another server walked through the swinging doors to the kitchen and ran into a stationary worker, watching the game on a phone. A platter of plates clattered to the floor. The chef poked his head out and said, dryly, “The Raptors won.” One thing about Kawhi: He works. He hits the weight room every day, and in this series Jimmy Butler was telling people Kawhi might be the strongest player in the entire league. He works on his shot every day: on off days, on mornings of games when they don’t shootaround, all the time. “Every freaking day,” said one Raptors staffer. “He’s like an Army officer.” When asked about the shot, Kawhi said, “Ended up finding a spot that I like, that I work on. Ended up getting to the spot.” Raptors staff confirm he has been seen working on that shot, among all the others: a running, pull-up fade from the right corner. He can take those shots without getting benched now. But he’s still running the lab. Sean O’Malley, who does PR for the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, was listening on the radio, streaming through his phone; he doesn’t have the extra cable channels. He was glued to it. The shot went up. The silence as the ball bounced made him think, for a few seconds, that the signal had been cut. Read more: Represented by Raptors: How one team connects the most diverse city in the world How this viral photo perfectly captured Kawhi’s game-winning shot for the Raptors Opinion | Dave Feschuk: Kawhi Legend, Greek Freak front and centre in Raptors-Bucks Eastern Conference final After it was over, Kawhi was asked about the atmosphere, about Toronto fans. He said, “When we got leads, they screamed defence, were screaming the whole time. It was amazing. You know, when guys are shooting free throws, they’re screaming as loud as they can. It was a fun experience. They’ve been great all year. We needed them.” Bernie Lee is a Toronto kid. He saw his first Raptors game at the SkyDome because he spent $10 at National Sports at Yonge and Sheppard and they threw in a ticket to a pre-season game against the Pistons. He has watched, by his count, every second of every Raptors game in franchise history. He’s also Jimmy Butler’s agent, and when the Philadelphia 76ers star drove the length of the court to tie the score, Lee ran back out to the court from the back of house, excited. He thought, 4.2 seconds is a lot of time. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... “I will never, ever, ever be able to explain to people the feeling of standing in an arena with 20,000 people that goes from dead silent to pure elation in the matter of seconds,” he said. “It’s literally a lifetime defined by seconds. I also can’t express the feeling of watching 20,000 people be so happy for something that runs the exact opposite of what you want, but … that’s life. “Just an incredible experience, and this is the best Raptors team they have ever had, and might ever have. They can, and should, go and win a ring.” Kawhi roared. His stone face broke and he howled, and he was mobbed, surrounded, hugged. Kyle Lowry snuck after the game ball. “He does that all the time,” said one Raptors staffer, “when it’s special.” “I’m a guy that acts like that I’ve been there before, so probably the last time you’ve seen me scream is when we won (the 2014 championship with San Antonio),” said Kawhi. “Whenever it’s a moment that I haven’t experienced, I probably try to give and show some emotion. Just let it come out.” In that, he wasn’t alone. Vakis Boutsalis grew up in East York, and he and his brother George were basketball fans. They’d go once a year or so; they would watch together. George suffered from schizophrenia; he died three years ago, on the day of Game 7 between Toronto and the Miami Heat.<doc-sep>Share this Story: Colby Cosh: Not even in God's hands: the immortality of Kawhi's corner shot Colby Cosh: Not even in God's hands: the immortality of Kawhi's corner shot Kawhi's unbearable, high-arcing shot had a paralyzing effect that turned everyone, for that miniature eternity, into a spectator Article content About that Kawhi Leonard buzzer-beater. When I hit middle age I entered a sort of third act of my life as a sports fan; maybe something like this has happened to you. As a kid I watched games like anyone else, innocently, as a hero-worshipper. When I rounded adulthood I changed and began to approach them with the amateur scientist’s desire to understand and deconstruct. Now, with most of my religious fervour forgotten under the pressure of various traumas and insults (such as the annihilation of the Montreal Expos or the decomposition of the Edmonton Oilers), I regard sports largely as pure art forms. (Maybe it is that everything but the writer in me is gradually dying?) There is not much cheering per se, but I follow the lives of particular personalities with the impatient adoration of a Dickens subscriber-reader; I savour the whispered political dialogue between the various sports; I receive lessons; I revel in the skill with which special moments are created. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Colby Cosh: Not even in God's hands: the immortality of Kawhi's corner shot Back to video Surely at a bare minimum it is the signature moment in the career of a great player From that standpoint the Kawhi shot is something special. We are all already debating where it fits within the general history of serious basketball. Surely at a bare minimum it is the signature moment in the career of a great player whose curriculum vitae is already crowned with impressive individual glory. But I suspect, as someone who can’t get past the Raptors’ cheesy, dated team name and who is innately allergic to any Toronto-based “Canada’s Team,” that it is more even than that. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Hasn’t it immediately discredited all the slo-mo sequences that conclude basketball movies and commercial promos for the sport? To see Kawhi’s speculative, possibly ill-chosen game-deciding shot over Joel Embiid clang off one side of the rim, ping off the opposite side, teeter in the air for an hour as if making its decision, strike again, begin succumbing to physics like a guilty man accepting a verdict … this is a time-stopping feeling that the game of basketball is always promising us, and almost never actually delivers in practice. Buzzer-beaters, when they happen, are generally more thunderbolt-like: long ones like Damian Lillard’s against the Thunder (can it really be three weeks already?) slam into your belly like a shot of moonshine. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Photo by Frank Gunn /CP There was something irresistible about the way Kawhi crouched out of bounds at the corner of the court while he was waiting to see if he had ended the series (and possibly an entire major phase in the history of the Philadelphia 76ers). It would have been different if it were any other star, but this was Kawhi — one of the most remorselessly reserved, distant, self-contained great performers on our continent since Ted Williams. Kawhi is someone who seems to live on another star; he behaves like he swore an oath that he would never ask another human to like him for anything but his ability, even by implication. When he released a signature shoe that had “Kawhi Leonard” with a period in black Times New Roman type on the heels, nobody knew whether it was a marketing guy’s joke about Kawhi Leonard, or whether it was Kawhi’s joke about himself. Either way it was true wit of a sort that few other sports can dream of approaching. (No other sport offers quite the same materials for creative expression.) Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content A time-stopping feeling that the game of basketball is always promising us, and almost never actually delivers The effect of Kawhi’s unbearable, high-arcing shot was the paralyzing effect that those basketball ads and movies are going for: he had turned everyone on the court, for that miniature eternity, into a spectator. Once the ball left his hands, Leonard and the other Raptors and the Sixers and the refs had no more to do with the outcome of the game than anyone else in the building, or anyone else outside it either. You couldn’t even say it was in God’s hands, if you believe in God. Photo by Stan Behal/Postmedia News Some genius took hold of Kawhi’s body, seized upon this man who to all appearances does not even necessarily enjoy basketball all that much, and made him emphasize this in an unnatural, astonishing way: he squatted to watch the ending of the show, almost literally joining the fans. He seemed to be saying “Let’s see how this turns out, shall we?” For that moment, this austere, laconic man gave the fans in that building — people Kawhi may soon turn his back on for good — a bizarre moment of oneness that no mere entertainer could achieve. If you were watching Game of Thrones hoping for drama this well-written: tough darts, bud. • Twitter: colbycosh Share this article in your social network Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Shopping essentials Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. NP Posted Sign up to receive the daily top stories from the National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. Email Address There was an error, please provide a valid email address.<doc-sep>
Just the single biggest moment in Toronto Raptors franchise history, and a fitting capper to one of the most dominant individual performances in NBA lore. No big deal. The sports world is abuzz following Kawhi Leonard‘s Game 7-winning buzzer-beater — the only shot of that kind in the history of the League — and, as we do following each Raptors playoff game, let’s take a look at the many things the out-of-market media are saying about Kawhi and the Raps following a monumental moment: Is there any player you’d rather have left in the playoffs than Kawhi Leonard? Perhaps an injured 7-footer in Oakland has a case, though the Raptors’ megastar (potential) rental is currently on a tear unmatched throughout the league. He poured in 15 fourth-quarter points in a 41-point effort on Sunday, draining a game-winning three at the buzzer to defeat Joel Embiid and the Sixers 92-90. Leonard’s buzzer-beater dagger bounced off rim four times before going down as if kissed by the basketball gods, and Toronto’s gamble in July 2018 may go down as the best deal in franchise history. The Raptors will now square off against Giannis Antetokounmpo in the Eastern Conference finals, and the Larry O’Brien Trophy is just eight wins away. Toronto will go as far as Leonard takes them. …Eighteen years ago, Vince Carter attempted a similar shot roughly 60 feet along the same side of the court, under similar circumstances, against the same franchise. Eighteen years ago, the ball clanked off the right side of the rim and the reverberations from that miss have haunted the team until … now. Nearly two decades of the city’s anxious self-fulfilling prophecies—spanning the void that Carter left upon his forced exit, then the existentialism brought upon by LeBron James—brought Toronto right back to a past they’d long hoped to overcome, mirrored on the other side of the floor. Vince had two seconds; Kawhi had four—as if time had to account for folding on top of itself. But with this second chance, they’ve broken through. This shot. It’s the greatest moment in Toronto Raptors history. Kawhi Leonard isn’t emotionless. You just don’t see it from him often. “I’m a guy that acts like I’ve been there before,” Leonard said after making one of the biggest shots of his career and one of the biggest in Toronto Raptors franchise history. …It was Leonard’s 39th shot of the game, the most he has ever attempted in his NBA career. Leonard isn’t a gunner or chucker. High-volume shooting is not part of his offensive repertoire. In his eight-year career, he has never taken more than 20 shots per game during the regular season and never more than 20 a game during the playoffs prior to this postseason. Efficiency is his game — high shooting percentage from the field and the foul line. But Game 7 called for something different. It called for Leonard to take as many shots as necessary to get the Raptors past Philadelphia. The cover art is ready to go for @Drake pic.twitter.com/JnU7pZFEkb — ESPN (@espn) May 13, 2019 …Any leftover grumbles over Toronto parting ways with its former star, DeMar DeRozan, have to be put to rest now that Leonard not only knocked down one of the biggest shots in franchise history, but carried his team along the way. He scored 41 points on 16-of-39 shooting with eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. He was the clear source of offense all game, up and through the final seconds. The rest of Toronto’s roster deferred to him in the clutch. This is why Kawhi Leonard is one of the best players on the planet, and why choosing talent over culture is wise, although it’s painful. This memorable moment was not just a win in the short-term, it’s one in the long-term, too. Kawhi put himself in some elite company pic.twitter.com/VdTIAnq92w — SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 13, 2019 When the ball left Kawhi Leonard’s hands on a fadeaway from the right baseline, with the final buzzer blaring as it arced toward the basket, it looked just a bit off. But then it bounced on the rim once. It bounced twice. Miraculously, it bounced a third and a fourth time.