Kyle Lowry Has Chance To Move Up Point Guard Ladder

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Chris Paul, Stephen Curry and Tony Parker. The aforementioned are probably some of the first names you think of when you start discussing some of the leagues elite floor generals. Don’t look now but there is a northern uprising happening in Toronto and at the forefront of this movement is Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry. The 7 year point guard out of Villanova has had a breakout year for the Raptors averaging 17.4 points, 7.4 assists, 4.7 rebounds and an all-star caliber player efficiency rating of 20.20. The young, gritty Raptors now find themselves notted up at 2-2 in the first round of the eastern conference playoff series against a very experienced Brooklyn Nets team.

At 28 years of age Lowry has finally found a home after bouncing around from the Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets. Its taken him about 7 seasons but he has finally matured into a very solid player and leader of the #3 seeded Raptors team. It was hard early on for Lowry in his career it seemed everywhere he played that coaches liked him but where never completely invested in him as “The Guy” to run their team. Memphis was invested in Mike Conley and then Lowry wasn’t mature enough to give Kevin McHale a chance during his time in Houston so he was traded. It took him awhile to “get it” but he finally understood what it takes to not only play at a high level in this league but lead your team to success in the process of winning.

From a production standpoint this season very few guards in the NBA have been as good as Lowry. He is an undersized guard who isn’t the most athletic guy but some how he manages to average just under 5 rebounds a game. Most point guards don’t average 4 rebounds a game let alone 4.7 per game but Lowry has always been an overachiever in that department. Over the last 3 seasons has averaged at least 4.5 rebounds or more. Lowry also managed to shoot a career high 38% from the 3-point line this season which was also huge for him.

To succeed in the regular season is one thing but to be one of the focal points for an inexperienced teams playoff success is another. In this hotly contested series Lowry has averaged 18.3 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds. His efficiency has taken a hit but his free throw shooting has been outstanding as he is shooting 95.7% from the charity stripe with an average of 5.8 free throws per game. He has to continue to keep getting to the free throw line and become just a bit more efficient from the field if the Raptors want to win this series. A playoff series win versus a battle tested Nets team would do wonders for the perception of the Raptors and set up a very interesting series against the Miami Heat.

In my opinion Kyle Lowry is one half of one of the top 3 best backcourts in the entire NBA. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson as well as John Wall and Bradley Beal are the best backcourts in the NBA respectively for Washington and Golden State. After that though I think DeMar DeRozen and Kyle Lowry are as good as its gets in the league. Lowry’s ability to rebound, facilitate and compete at a high level are 2nd to none in the NBA. DeRozen was an all-star this season and has established himself as a top 3 shooting guard in the NBA. One was an all-star and the other should have been an all-star, both have helped put Toronto basketball back on the map and with a playoff series win over Brooklyn can further confirm themselves as some the elites at their positions in the league.