Kawhi Leonard says Toronto has a long way to go before it’s considered a title contender.
“We’re not Finals competitors right now,” says Leonard.
The Raptors have all the makings of a championship contender. But you’re going to have to convince them of it: https://t.co/GAhN98XewO
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) October 19, 2018
Kawhi had 24 points and 12 rebounds in his Raptors regular season debut Wednesday night, a 116-104 win against the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers.
Per ESPN:
“We have a long road before we ever think about matching up with the champions like Golden State,” Kawhi Leonard said. “We’re not Finals competitors right now.”
“We don’t know what this team is,” Kyle Lowry said. “We’re all still trying to figure each other out.”
The Celtics are the East’s favorites for a reason. But it doesn’t take much imagination to see the Raptors as a nasty defensive team that flings 3-pointers by the bushel, Lowry giving his death stare and Leonard calling to mind the player who had the Warriors mulling their fate two years ago.
“It’s hard to say, I didn’t really see the Celtics compete last year,” Leonard said. “I wasn’t on the floor.”
“I think we’ll be fine against Boston,” Lowry said. “Every day is different, some days we’ll be good against them. It’s hard to define anything for us right now.”
