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Going into the 2019 season, the Toronto Raptors had finished five straight seasons with a winning record, finishing as a top-four seed each year.<\/p>\n
They had just brought in new head coach Nick Nurse. Before him, Dwane Casey had led the team and helped build the culture for seven years.<\/p>\n
For each of those seasons from 2014-2018, the team revolved around a core group of guys. That core consisted of Kyle Lowry, Jonas Valan\u010di\u016bnas, and DeMar DeRozan. Eventually, Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby were added to that list.<\/p>\n
For those five years, the Raptors fought hard and competed every night. Unfortunately for them, they never made it past LeBron in the DeMar DeRozan\/Dwane Casey era. Among those five playoff appearances, Toronto lost to LeBron\u2019s Cleveland Cavaliers three times, giving them the viral nickname \u201cLeBronto\u201d.<\/p>\n
Yet, in these seasons, the same ones that saw the rise of the Golden Dynasty and possibly the greatest team in NBA history, the Raptors decided to try to win it all rather than sell and rebuild.<\/p>\n
Going into the 2019 season, Toronto traded a package that included franchise cornerstone DeRozan to San Antonio for Kawhi Leonard. Leonard would go on to hit the greatest shot in franchise history to win Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, en route to Toronto\u2019s first NBA title. A title they won, many would say, because Kevin Durant tore his Achilles during the second round of the playoffs against Houston.<\/p>\n
What lesson can the Suns learn from Toronto\u2019s 2019 championship? Stay prepared and build a winning culture. Patiently wait, but when the perfect trade arises, be fearless. You never know when the right moment might suddenly open a championship window.<\/p>\n
NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n The Mavs won 57 games in 2011, which shouldn\u2019t have been a surprise. Dallas won at least 50 games every single year from 2001 through 2010.<\/p>\n In 2006, Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals for the first time in his career, winning 60 games along the way. They would lose in six games to the Miami Heat, led by young superstar Dwyane Wade and old Western Conference rival, Shaquille O\u2019Neal.<\/p>\n The following year ended in disaster. After winning 67 games and claiming the first seed in the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks would lose to the \u201cWe Believe\u201d Warriors. In doing so, they became just the third one seed to lose to an eight seed in NBA history and the first to do so in a seven-game series.<\/p>\n The season after losing in six in the NBA finals, this Western Conference contender lost a playoff series in embarrassing fashion to a team they should have beaten.<\/p>\n Does that sound familiar?<\/p>\n Would it sound more familiar if I told you that the following season they traded for a 34-year-old superstar in Jason Kidd at the trade deadline?<\/p>\n Over the next few years, the Mavericks picked up a center who had dealt with injuries<\/a> in the previous couple of seasons, and a certain defensive-minded wing <\/a>that was now in his thirties but could still surprise you with a bucket. The entire time, never losing faith and trading their franchise cornerstone.<\/p>\n Eventually, they broke through. The Mavericks defeated the defending back-to-back champion Lakers, the up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder, and a Miami Heat superteam to win their only title to date. A title they won, many would say, because LeBron James underperformed in the 2011 Finals.<\/p>\n What lesson can the Suns learn from Dallas\u2019 2011 championship? Stay prepared and build a winning culture. Patiently wait, but when the perfect trade arises, be fearless. You never know when the right moment might suddenly open a championship window.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n