Columnist image

TSN Raptors Reporter

| Archive

TORONTO - When Kyle Lowry transformed his body over the summer he did so with the long haul in mind, and while we're still four months away from finding out if it will allow him to maintain his high level of play into the post-season, the Raptors are already noticing a difference in their all-star point guard.

"[He] just seems a little bit quicker," said teammate and backcourt comrade DeMar DeRozan. "Explosion is there, I just think he's lighter on his feet, honestly. He's able to do a lot of things at a higher level. Not saying he couldn't last year, I just think this time around, I think it just does something mentally knowing you're in better shape, your body is slimmed down. I think confidence-wise that definitely took him a long way."

Even on a rare off night, Lowry showed off the blistering speed he's become known for in the third quarter of Friday's 90-83 win over Milwaukee. Grabbing the loose ball off a Luis Scola tip-out, the 6-foot guard started his own fast break, blowing by two or three Bucks players and going coast-to-coast for the lay-up to put Toronto up by 19, its largest lead of the game.

Lowry, who had 12 points in the victory, shot just 5-of-16 but came up big down the stretch, driving past OJ Mayo and finishing another lay-up, this one over the long and athletic Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"He can go longer, harder, later in the game," head coach Dwane Casey said of the slimmed-down Lowry. "That's one thing that his being lighter has done, is help his stamina late in the game. You've got to have that energy and that burst of speed late in the game to do that and that's what him being lighter has done, is giving him that extra oomph."

Through 23 games, Lowry is off to the best start of his 10-year career. Statistically, he's been even better than the early-season stretch that earned him player of the month honours for December and his first all-star selection a year ago.

He's been dynamic on both ends of the floor. On top of getting to the rim on offence, Lowry is on pace to eclipse his career-high in three-point attempts by 90 while shooting a personal best 42 per cent from beyond the arc. Defensively, his quickness has also come in handy. He leads the NBA in steals.

"He's playing, knock on wood, as well as he's played since he's been here," Casey said. "He's shooting the ball [well]. I think that's one thing he's doing a great job of, is shooting the ball. [If] health continues and good fortunes continue, he'll continue to do that."

At this point last season, DeRozan was already out with a groin injury that would sideline him for 21 games - he didn't log a single minute in December - and Lowry, carrying the load offensively, was playing out of his mind. The workload was substantial and by the time DeRozan, Toronto's leading scorer, returned in the New Year, Lowry was running on fumes.

Now, with a pair of starters - DeMarre Carroll and Jonas Valanciunas - out indefinitely, the Raptors are asking a lot from their starting point guard once again but Lowry, the new and improved version, is hopeful he's in better condition to pace himself.

"That’s why I changed my body," said the 29-year-old. "Even if DeMar or whatever, knock on wood, somebody did go down, I’d be able to sustain it. Having DeMar makes the job a lot easier. A lot of the offensive burden is coming on my shoulders. We’re missing JV and DC. Me and DeMar are able to pick and choose. We both play well together."

While his slimmer frame has made a difference, having DeRozan, healthy and playing at a high level, alongside him in the backcourt is the biggest factor in Lowry's hot start, he insists. Although both guards enjoyed career-best stretches last season - Lowry in December and DeRozan in March/April, each winning player of the month - the Raptors rarely had them at full strength and playing their best at the same time. We're finally being reminded what they're capable of, playing off each other as a tandem - one of the league's best at their positions.

Lowry and DeRozan are the sixth-highest scoring duo (at any position) in the NBA this season and the third-highest scoring backcourt (behind only Golden State's Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson as well as Portland's Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum), first in the Eastern Conference. They've been at their best, individually and collectively, late in games. DeRozan and Lowry rank third and fourth, respectively, in second-half scoring among East players, trailing Paul George and LeBron James in that category.

"It's easy," said DeRozan. "It's so easy because some nights I can be a guy who gets everybody involved and get my couple easy shots because Kyle is carrying the scoring load, so it makes it easier for me to be able to do everything else, or vice-versa."

Conferring game notes, the two guards returned to the court side-by-side following a third-quarter timeout. You see them do the same in the locker room after every contest. They have become very close, both on and off the floor, in their three-plus years together with the Raptors. Their chemistry is undeniable. Depending on what the defence allows or game-flow dictates, DeRozan says he and Lowry often alternate the role of lead scorer quarter-to-quarter, while the other becomes a facilitator.

With Lowry deferring to his teammate, DeRozan has had two of his better games of the season this week. In wins over the Spurs and Bucks, the 26-year-old has combined for 55 points, including a game-high 27 on Friday, on an efficient 18-for-32 from the field and 19-for-20 from the line.

It should also be noted that the addition of Cory Joseph, who closes most games as the third guard with Lowry and DeRozan, takes pressure off the two starters and allows them to excel offensively. Joseph often defends the opposition's best guard while initiating the offence so that Lowry can play off the ball and maintain his energy.

"Right now they're playing probably at the top of their game," Casey said. "Those two guys are both playing at an all-star level. Knock on wood, health prevailing, they continue to do that on a consistent basis."

The Raptors continue to "knock on wood" (though Casey actually knocked on the plastic podium he was standing at there), as they should. Good health is a fickle thing in the NBA and Lowry has missed an average of 16.5 games per season over the last four years. Casey and his coaching staff are doing what they can to monitor his and DeRozan's minutes but, with Carroll and Valanciunas sidelined, that's often easier said than done. They're far too valuable.

"We are trying to limit Kyle’s minutes," Casey said. "It’s very difficult in trying to do what we need to do. It depends on the guys behind him stepping up and doing their job so we don’t wear out DeMar and Kyle and our starting unit. Our margin for error is very slim so I wish we could rest guys or take two weeks off but we can’t do that."

"I feel good," Lowry said. "I'll let you guys know in March and April how I really feel, that's where it's really going to [matter]."