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Kawhi doesn't care about being best player: 'I want to be the best team'

Ron Turenne / National Basketball Association / Getty

As the Toronto Raptors celebrated winning the Eastern Conference on Saturday night following their Game 6 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, team president Masai Ujiri declared that Raptors superstar Kawhi Leonard is "the best player in the league."

However, Leonard quickly steered the focus away from personal accolades.

"I don't really judge my game like that," he said of Ujiri's speech, according to the Washington Post's Ben Golliver. "I'm more of a team aspect, see what my team is doing. I just want to win. I don't care about being the best player. I want to be the best team. I've always said that.

"Just before the season when we made the trade, Masai felt that way about me. He told me how he felt and why he made the trade. It's turning out well now. We're in The Finals, and we're not done yet."

Leonard recorded a double-double of 27 points and 17 rebounds on 9-of-22 shooting from the field across 41 minutes of action at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday. He also contributed seven assists and a pair of steals and blocks to lead the Raptors to their first-ever Finals berth.

And in his first year north of the border, Leonard has already established a new franchise record for the most 35-point playoff outings (seven). Overall, he's averaging 31.2 points and shooting 50.7 percent from the field through 18 postseason games heading into the NBA Finals against the reigning champion Golden State Warriors.

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