Kawhi Leonard's 'superstar' quality key to Toronto Raptors claiming Eastern Conference Finals lead for first time
Saturday 25 May 2019 07:22, UK
Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry praised the 'superstar' qualities of team-mate Kawhi Leonard, after the team's franchise star led them to a vital road win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The former NBA Finals MVP was dominant as the Raptors took a 3-2 Eastern Conference Finals series lead at Fiserv Forum. Leonard notched up 35 points, as well as nine assists and seven rebounds and played a key role defensively in nullifying the threat of the hosts' star man Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Leonard, who has just been named to the All-NBA and All-Defensive second teams, is considered by many to be the best two-way player in the league and it's easy to see why after his inspired performance in the Raptors' 105-99 victory.
And Lowry was effusive in his praise for his colleague, who also picked up two steals, after the ball game.
"Superstar, superstar," the point guard mused, when considering The Klaw's performance.
"In the playoffs you want to (isolate) and get to your spot - and it was pretty impressive. The game he played tonight - 35, nine and seven - is a pretty good game.
"It's a pretty good game on the big stage, on the road."
Toronto's back-up point guard Fred VanVleet suggested that Leonard, who went 5-for-8 from three in Game 5, is unguardable when he's shooting at that clip from beyond the arc.
And head coach Nick Nurse praised Leonard's willingness to step up as Toronto seized the initiative in the fourth quarter and said the 27-year-old's positivity was contagious.
Nurse said: "He gets stronger as the fourth (quarter) wears on. He wants the ball and he wants to make the plays and he seems to be making the right play for the most part - and it really gives the rest of the guys a lot of confidence when you have a guy playing like that."
Leonard himself is known as a man of few words at the best of times, but he was fairly forthcoming when asked how he managed to remain focused enough to go out and put in that type of performance in such a vital game.
"Pretty much try to stay with a consistent mindset throughout the whole game," he said. "Just trying to read the defense throughout the entire game, see what's working, and like you said, (coach) told me tonight, go get it, and I'm not afraid of the moment. I enjoy it, and this was our workout for the summer.
"You've just got to go out and shoot the ball, I guess. That's my mindset. Get to a spot, try to help my team-mates win the game. Just trying to win, either if it's me scoring points or getting my team-mates wide open looks, just out there trying to win. It's not really matter about me scoring, it's just about being aggressive and don't shy away from anything."
Unsurprisingly, not many Bucks were in talkative mood after the game, but guard Malcolm Brogdon did concede that they will have to do a better job against Leonard in Game 6 if they wish to take the series to a decider.
Brogdon said: "He's one of the most versatile players we have in the league. He's a great player. You've just got to make him uncomfortable. Tonight he was able to get to his spots and affect the game on both sides. We've got to be able to limit him if we're going to win the next game."
Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer praised Leonard for the shot you can see in the clip directly above but he feels that his team's defeat came down to a few fine margins in the game, and he's confident they can bounce back.
He said: "You know, we've been a resilient group all year. We just need to think about going and winning one game, go to Toronto and get that. Tonight (was) a little bit of a strange box score, obviously, VanVleet from the three-point line (he shot 7-for-9) and them in general from the three-point line (Toronto shot 41% overall in Game 5) was a huge impact on the game.
"They got to the free throw line more than us and we needed a couple (of) rebounds there down the stretch that I think when we look at the film we'll feel like if we could have gotten a few more defensive rebounds from the five, four, three-minute mark on (and) maybe the end result would have been different. But you know, we'll get ready. We'll get prepared, go to Toronto."
Game 6 takes place in Toronto in the early hours of Sunday morning (1:30am) live on Sky Sports Arena.
