TORONTO — About a week ago, Toronto Raptors guards Kyle Lowry and Norman Powell started waging three-point contests before games. They pick five spots around the arc and shoot and shoot and shoot and shoot until one of them sinks five balls from each position. Sometimes Norm wins; sometimes Kyle comes out on top, especially when he recruits other Raptors to sabotage Powell’s shots.

“Yeah, now he’s starting to use other players to knock my ball around and things like that,” Powell says, laughing. “But ever since we started doing that, he’s been lighting it up. So, I’m taking credit for it.”

It’s true—in the four games the Raptors have played since the pre-game competitions commenced, Lowry is a near unbelievable 20-for-28 from beyond the arc, enjoying the best stretch of three-point shooting he’s ever experienced in his career. He’s hitting contested shots and open ones; attempts from the top of the arc and from the corners; long balls in transition and at the end of long sequences. He’s hitting absolutely everything.

“Every shot I take feels like it’s going in,” Lowry said after his Raptors barrelled over the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 113-80 Friday night. “If Norm wants to take credit, he can have it, man. My teammates are the reason I’m able to do the things that I’m able to do.”

That’s a good point, too. With DeMar DeRozan off to the best start of his career, Jonas Valanciunas asserting himself beneath the rim, and Cory Joseph providing a stretch of solid play, Lowry is finding plenty of opportunities to shoot comfortably from long range. He went 6-for-9 Friday night, with the majority of his attempts coming without much defensive resistance as the Lakers chased his teammates around the floor and left Lowry criminally open.

“DeMar’s getting in there, driving and kicking out. I’m trailing the play a lot. Cory’s setting me up. I think when other guys are scoring—Cory, DeMar, Norm—it takes the attention off of me and I can get an easy spot up three,” Lowry said. “It’s just the opportunity that’s there. Once it presents itself, you take it.”

Of course, three-point shooting can be a streaky thing. Lowry went through one of the deepest shooting funks of his 11-season career during last year’s playoffs, a trend that continued early on this year as Lowry shot just 29 per cent from beyond the arc during Toronto’s first nine games.

But over his next 10 he’s hit over half his attempts as extra long sessions on the practice court—shooting ball after ball after ball—have carried over into games.

“He’s been shooting the ball extremely well. He works on it. He puts in the time and there’s no replacement for that,” Raptors head coach Dwane Casey said. “Earlier in the year, everyone was panicking when he wasn’t making shots. But he’s a shooter. It’s always going to come back.”

Friday night Lowry hit a pair of threes in the first quarter before missing an attempt in the second, which qualifies as an exceptional event at this point. But then he went right back to drilling them, including his most challenging shot of the night with a little more than three minutes left in the half.

After feeding DeRozan on a fast break, Lowry trailed closely behind with Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson in hot pursuit. Without noticing the pressure his teammate was under, DeRozan passed the ball back to Lowry, who had little chance to catch it as Clarkson lunged for a steal. But the ever-savvy Lowry wisely batted the ball into the corner as Clarkson reached out, earning himself precious steps and leaving his foe behind. Lowry chased the ball down, screeched to a halt as he collected it and immediately fired, sinking his fourth three of the night and nailing a shot that was much, much harder than it looked.

He made another three-pointer a minute later, and yet another early in the fourth, making him six for seven on the night and 20-of-his-last-26 at the time.

“That’s him, you know?” DeRozan said. “I told him at the beginning of the season when he was missing, ‘You know it’s going to come.’ And it’s finally coming. He worked on it. So, it’s not surprising.”

Lowry almost had one more three Friday night as he drained an insanely deep attempt from practically the scorer’s table as the shot clock expired. The officials determined he’d let it go a millisecond too late, and Lowry protested as he ran back up the floor and took several looks up to the scoreboard for a replay that would never come. Not that Lowry has been short on fortune lately. But it was another example of just how hot he’s been.

“I wanted that one,” Lowry said. “It would’ve been a great play.”

Alas, it didn’t work out. But pretty much everything else has for Lowry of late. He ended up playing just over half an hour Friday and contributed a typically stellar line with 24 points, seven assists and four rebounds. On a team that’s been rolling collectively over its last five games, Lowry’s hot streak stands out. And although it’s up for debate just how much influence pre-game shenanigans have had on Lowry’s sudden success, Powell is more than happy to collect some recognition.

“I think I’m building a little confidence in him,” Powell said with a smile. “It’s really good what he’s been doing. He’s been putting extra time in the gym working on his shot. And it’s coming along. And hopefully he can continue to shoot the ball the way he is. It’s been great for us.”