MILWAUKEE — Kawhi Leonard was named All-NBA second team on Thursday, and later, the Toronto Raptors All-Star delivered a two-way performance that put the honor in question.

Maybe he should have been first-team All-NBA?

Is he the best player in the game today? Not best player in the playoffs. He’s definitely that.

Is he the best player? Better than Kevin Durant? Better than LeBron James? Better than James Harden?

Leonard scored a game-high 35 points, contributed a career-high nine assists (all led to three-pointers) and had seven rebounds and two steals in Toronto’s 105-99 victory over Milwaukee in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.

"I'm not afraid of the moment," Leonard said. "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 teammates win the game.

"Just trying to win, either if it's me scoring points or getting my teammates wide-open looks, just out there trying to win. It's not really about me scoring, it's just about being aggressive and don't shy away from anything."

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The Raptors have a 3-2 series lead after the first road victory of the series and can advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history with a win in Game 6 on Saturday in Toronto.

They say closeout games are the most difficult ones to win, and Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo vowed his team won’t fold.

"We’re not going to fold. C’mon, man," he said. "Best team in the league, man. We’re not going to fold. ... If we lose, we lose. OK, cool. But we’re not going to fold as a team. That’s not what we do."

It will be a wild scene in and around Scotiabank Arena on Saturday, and it is made possible by Leonard, who has taken over this series with his offense and defense and is doing it less than 100 percent healthy.

The playoff numbers are stellar for Leonard. He is averaging 31.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.5 steals and shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 41.1 percent on 3-pointers. Durant is the only player close to matching those stats this postseason.

Leonard has scored at least 30 points in 11 of 17 postseason games, and has seven games with at least 35 points. In the past 20 seasons, only James has scored 35 or more seven times before the Finals, according to ESPN.

"I certainly remember he's been unbelievable in the playoffs with the (San Antonio) Spurs as well, but you're not as close to it," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "Heck, you might not have even hve seen all the games or whatever. But I can only state that he's been really good, and it seems like he gets stronger as the fourth wears on."

In a game of big shot after big shot, Leonard had his share, scoring 15 points and playing every second of the fourth quarter. During a pivotal stretch in the fourth, he scored eight points in a row, erasing a Bucks lead and putting Toronto ahead 87-81 on back-to-back 3-pointers and two free throws.

He later rebounded his own missed 3-pointer, drew the foul and made two free throws to put Toronto ahead 98-95.

"That is a critical play that can't happen," Milwaukee coach Mike Budenholzer said.

Leonard is logging serious minutes too after a regular season in which the Raptors monitored his minutes and didn’t play him in one game of a back-to-back. He played 40 or more minutes just four times during the regular season. He has six such games in the playoffs.

"He couldn't wait for the playoffs to get here," Nurse said. "He's played a lot of minutes, and he's banged-up and he says, 'Everybody is banged-up. But I want to play and I'm going to play and I'm ready to play.' I, again, give him a lot of credit for that."

That’s now three consecutive Raptors wins in the series against the Bucks, who didn’t lose more than two straight all season. Toronto has been better, but after Game 2, Nurse decided to make Leonard the primary defender on Antetokounmpo. Since then, Antetokounmpo hasn’t had it easy, even with 24 points. He’s not dominating in the paint, going 6-for-12 on shots at the rim.

"As impressive as his offense is — and it's impressive — I get more impressed when he's down there guarding and making plays and blocking shots and flying in for rebounds," Nurse said. "My favorite thing is when he just decides once or twice a game to just go take it from somebody and go the other way. Those are huge momentum plays, and that's impressive to me."

Leonard — one of three players on the Toronto roster who has played in the Finals — also brings his quiet, poised leadership to the Raptors.

"Experience helps a lot," he said. "You know, just from my input, I've been here before. I've been to the Finals, and it's pretty much nothing new that I'm seeing out there. You've just got to have fun with it and enjoy it. Like I told them tonight, we were down 10, I told them to enjoy the moment and embrace it, and let's have fun and love it. This is why we're here."

He's making his case for NBA's best player, too.

"I know that I put the work in," Leonard said. "I can live with the results because I'm having fun and I'm putting my all out on the floor."

Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.