Kawhi Leonard trade widens gap between Warriors and teams chasing them

Wouldn’t it be odd if the Golden State Warriors actually became the last “super team” of this generation?
 
Kawhi Leonard, who was ticketed to the Los Angeles LeBrons as a sure thing by NBA fabulists across the nation, has been traded as far from Los Angeles as the NBA allows -- Toronto. And Paul George, the third peg of this super team, decided to stay in Oklahoma City, which is as far from Los Angeles culturally as the NBA can offer.
 
And no, that is not some left-handed swipe at Oklahoma City. If it’s good enough for Paul George, it ought to be good enough for you.
 
The point is, Leonard and Danny Green now are Raptors, at the price of DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a protected 2019 first-round draft pick. And while Leonard still is a rental who might end up in Los Angeles, it's still a sign that super teams don’t just happen at one person’s whim.
 
And it also means that the Warriors, who introduce DeMarcus Cousins on Thursday in one of those weeks-after-the-fact press conferences that never make much sense, remain untroubled by the field.
 
It should be mentioned here that the Warriors, while fitting the rough definition of a super team, were a championship winner before Kevin Durant, and as such gained his love as someone who could dramatically lengthen the title odds for all the other teams in the league. And Cousins is a Warrior to rehabilitate his own career rather than Golden State’s.
 
The notion that James was going to Los Angeles to build a super team of his own was predicated, though, on other great players joining him, and none have. George wouldn’t even talk to the Lakers, and Leonard couldn’t because he didn’t own his employment freedom -- and might not have been interested in any event.
 
In short, the Warriors now are further from their closest pursuers than ever, and the most interesting part of this NBA season will be to see who comes closest to them without actually thinking anything can be done about it.
 
There is an extraordinary level of hubris here, as though the Warriors shall be invulnerable forever. They won’t, of course, for something will separate them eventually, most likely either time or money.
 
But the NBA’s most interesting developments have been at the fringes of the Warriors empire, and the most notable thing is that the super team to challenge them was not built this year, or even approached. The Raptors took a huge gamble with Leonard but one they are willing to undertake. The Rockets got worse. The rest of the West is sort of milling around playoff spots three through eight, with the Lakers making the biggest leap despite getting only one-third of the things on their shopping list.
 
But there is no super team to challenge the super team, and another narrative dies a hideous death. That’s OK, though. The concept of the narrative never is as much fun as the surprise ending anyway. Maybe someone will knock off Golden State this coming season, and the fascination will come not in the planning but the shock value. That’s not the way to bet, mind you, but the NBA arms race has stopped with only one clear winner.
 
At least for awhile. Given that LeBron couldn't make a super team in one summer, maybe for a longer while than we think.