Every season fans look forward to seeing the returns of former players to their previous team. In the past, it was LeBron James visiting Cleveland or Kevin Durant going back to Oklahoma City. There are mixed reactions for former players. You can either be appreciated for what you did like James or be hated for leaving the town behind like Durant. This year is no different. There are plenty of returns for the 2019-20 NBA season but there are none bigger than these three.
Anthony Davis Highlights Top Three Returns for 2019
Anthony Davis Returns to New Orleans
Anthony Davis wanted out of New Orleans and forced his way out. Now he joins LeBron James as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. He will return to New Orleans on November 27th. The fans in New Orleans loved Davis but when it came down to it, he wanted to move on. Sometimes it’s hard to tell what reaction a player will get while returning but in this case, it might not be pleasant.
Russell Westbrook Returns to Oklahoma City
Russell Westbrook returns to Oklahoma City on January 9th. Over the years, the Oklahoma City Thunder had come through the city like Durant, James Harden, and Paul George. Russell Westbrook has been the only mainstay over these years. But after 11 years, Westbrook decided he wanted to move on and successfully requested a trade. He now reunites with Harden in Houston.
Westbrook was loyal to the Thunder but after all these years of them moving on from other talents, he had enough. He put the franchise on his shoulder and carried this team over the past few years. Seeing him in red will certainly hard to swallow but fans will likely be thankful for sticking with them all of these years.
Kawhi Leonard Returns to Toronto
Kawhi Leonard will return to face the Toronto Raptors on December 11th. Not many people thought his stint in Toronto would last very long and it didn’t. After a year, Kawhi decided to move on to the Los Angeles Clippers.
In one year, he led the Raptors to their first-ever NBA championship in franchise history. There will be a lot of fans who appreciate what Leonard did as they should but some fans feel like one year wasn’t enough. After Toronto did everything to ke9p him—like promises of never having to pay for a meal and more—he didn’t want to stay. The reaction should be positive across the board for what he did but we never know what fans have in store.
Other Notable Returns
This year is packed with a lot of returns and they’re all big names. There are plenty of returns for the 2019-20 NBA season.
- Kristaps Porzingis returns to New York on November 14th
- Mike Conley returns to Memphis on November 15th
- Chris Paul returns to Houston on October 28th
- Kemba Walker returns to Charlotte on November 7th
- Kyrie Irving returns to Boston on November 27th
- Paul George returns to Oklahoma City December 22nd
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