In a recent appearance on the ‘Hello and Welcome’ podcast, former NBA big man Serge Ibaka opened up on the moment that will live in Raptors history forever: Kawhi Leonard’s series-clinching buzzer-beater against the Philadelphia 76ers. Ibaka admitted that he didn’t think the shot would go in, and recalls fighting the urge to tip the ball or crash for an offensive rebound.
“Honestly, I didn’t believe that shot was going to go in. I was like ‘No way.’ I was ready to go for an offensive rebound, so I was almost close to tipping the ball. I was like ‘Oh my god!'”
Ibaka was posted right under the rim during Kawhi Leonard’s buzzer-beater in Game 7, and things could have ended very differently if he had touched the ball too early. It would have been a devastating mistake for both his team and Raptors fans who were cheering with everything they had.
“If I had touched that ball, I’d have to retire because there’s no way you come back from that. When the ball was bouncing, I was ready to go, ready to tip off. Thank god I didn’t touch that ball.”
Kawhi Leonard’s shot against the 76ers is not just the best shot in Raptors history, it’s one of the greatest moments in all of professional sports. While the Raptors still had two rounds to go after that, it set the stage for their title run in a glorious and unforgettable way.
The series went the full 7 games, and Joel Embiid was giving everything he had. So when Kawhi rose up for that shot on the baseline, fading away at an awkward angle, it looked like the game would be headed to overtime.
Instead, it bounded four times off the rim in perhaps one of the most dramatic shots the NBA has seen. Ibaka had a front-row seat to the whole thing, and you could see the moment that he realized the shot was going in.
To this day, it stands as the only Game 7 buzzer-beater in NBA Playoffs history. The best part is, it led to them winning the championship a few weeks later over the Stephen Curry-led Warriors.
For any big man in Ibaka’s situation, it would have been natural to go for that premature tip-in, which would have been called for offensive interference and negated the shot. At one point, you could see Ibaka reaching for the ball as if to tip it in, but he avoided the crucial mistake, and it may have saved their season.
Everything came together for the Raptors that season, and while the good times didn’t last (Kawhi moved to Los Angeles that summer), his legacy there will last forever as the only superstar to finish the job and bring the Larry O’Brien trophy to Toronto.
Things could have ended very differently if Ibaka had touched that ball, and he would have become public enemy number one across all of Canada. Fortunately, things ended the way they did, and Ibaka would stick around for one more season before eventually leaving the franchise behind and following Leonard to the Clippers.
