Toronto Raptors: 6ix Takes – Lowry’s shooting woes a ‘pesky’ problem for Dinos

2. Kyle Lowry doesn’t care about your ‘traditional’ box score

Lowry’s back soreness feels like the ultimate getting old injury, and please know that I’m not attempting to delegitimize the severity of his injury by saying that. I’m more just happy that I don’t have to tough out episodes of back soreness and face world-class athletes. It’s easy for me (and most others) to grind our way through a full day of emails and phone calls.

Once upon a time, the 32-year-old Philadelphian would be judged based solely on the number of points he scored. Remember the DeMar and Kyle show? It was in theatres for a time.

Since returning from his extended absence, Lowry has not scored more than 16 points in a game, but when you watch the team, specifically the starters, how they operate with him at the helm cannot be duplicated by any one of Toronto’s remaining guards.

Lowry is unrivaled in his ability to get and keep every player on the floor involved. He’s also pretty darn good at taking a charge when his team needs a stop, something it desperately missed when Lowry was out. The former Wildcat ups the tempo at precisely the right moment, wanting to move so quickly at times, Lowry will visibly shame referees for their lack of urgency during out-of-bounds plays.

Mind you, as effective as Lowry has been as a facilitator and game manager, the Raptors need him to find his scoring touch sooner rather than later. Ensuring No. 7 is in peak form come playoff time is as critical to this team’s success as maintaining and managing Kawhi Leonard‘s health for the remainder of the season.