Nurse also went on to reveal that Leonard delivered one of those knockout punchlines after the Raptors defeated the Bucks in Game 5 in Milwaukee, when he tried to keep his team level-headed and focused on the task at hand with an opportunity to close out the series at home in Game 6.
The 51-year-old described to his team how his D-League team had won a Game 1 in a best-of-three Finals on the road and would have the opportunity to win the championship at home, and with the city abuzz and even ring sizes being prepped, the team lost by 25.
Halfway through that story, Leonard interjected with, “In the D-League? I’m done listening to this story.”
It speaks to the chemistry the pair have developed over the course of the season that Leonard can feel so comfortable in chirping his coach like that, and bodes well for the big decision Leonard has to make soon in free agency.
“I know him a lot better. I really like the level of our relationship, the level of our communication,” Nurse said. “If we were going into that meeting tomorrow, he would certainly have a different feel for me.”