Kawhi Leonard Explains Why He Has a Middle Finger Emoji Engraved on His Championship Ring

Kawhi Leonard received a warm welcome when he returned to Toronto to receive his NBA Championship ring Wednesday night.

After the game against his former team, Kawhi spoke about a peculiar detail on his ring. “I have like an F you symbol on there.” he told reporters. But what does the alleged middle finger emoji mean? Some people speculated that it could be a diss aimed at Kawhi’s former team, the San Antonio Spurs.

But according to Kawhi himself, the reason for the engraving is much more practical. The  “F you symbol” supposedly reminds him to put the ring on his middle finger.

Michael Lee of The Athletic explained the star athlete’s choice on Twitter. “Kawhi Leonard said he has a middle finger emoji engraved inside his TOR championship ring, which is the size of a spaceship but looks normal on his hand, but there isn’t some hidden message,” Lee tweeted. “‘It reminds me, ‘Put it on my middle finger.’ Spurs ring was sized for his index finger.” It’s such a Kawhi answer.

The Los Angeles Clippers star was a bit more talkative when he was asked about the decision that led him back home to California, to play for the Clippers, despite winning the championship with the Raptors.”Gave it big consideration,” Leonard said about possibly staying in Toronto, according to ESPN. “I took my time like I did. I didn’t hurry up and make a quick decision. I talked to the front office in deep detail. It was a hard choice to make.”

Kawhi didn’t just get his ring, his Clippers walked away with the win in his return to Toronto. The Clippers won 112-92.