PHILADELPHIA – Kyle Lowry cracked a smile and pointed.



“You see that?” he asked.



Lowry was back in North Philly, at Cecil B. Moore Recreational Center — one of the places where his chippy, competitive drive was formed, not far from where he grew up on 20th and Lehigh. He had brought the Larry O’Brien trophy home for people from the old neighborhood, people he still holds dear, and had spotted an elderly woman maneuvering slowly through the gym by pushing a grocery store cart. Lowry wasn’t judging. He was merely admiring the resourcefulness of the people from his community: making a way from no way.



“That’s hood,” Lowry said, before shaking his head and chuckling. “That’s the hood right there.”



These are the folks with whom Lowry wanted to share his latest, greatest triumph. Now that he finally had the chance to hug the Larry O’B after 13 years in the NBA — having...