Kevaughn Wilson
Point guard Kyle Lowry was selected for a Toronto Raptors record sixth straight all-star appearance for the Eastern Conference Thursday night.
With his selection, Lowry broke the previous franchise record of five appearances shared by retired players Vince Carter and Chris Bosh.
The 33-year-old averages 19.9 points, 7.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds so far this season for Toronto, who currently sit at second in the East with a 34-14 record.
Coach of the Raptors, Nick Nurse was not surprised by Lowry’s selection
“I expected him to make the team. I think he’s been the focal point and centrepiece of our team for the last 7 years,” Nurse said to Sportsnet. “He’s a fantastic player, he’s a winner.”
Lowry was thankful for his selection after the game on Thursday.
“It was cool, man, because I wouldn’t be here without my teammates,” he said to CBC sports. “Those guys literally let me lead them and I love them for it. Being there with P, it’s going to be awesome.”
The Raptors guard was selected along with Eastern stars: Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons, Khris Middleton, Domantas Sabonis, Jayson Tatum and Bam Adebayo.
The point guard became Raptor’s all-time leader in assists on Tuesday night with his 3771st assist, passing Jose Calderon’s previous record of 3770.
Lowry said its moments like these that are the most rewarding.
“To pass a guy like Jose, it means a tremendous amount,” he said. “To do it for this long, and to do it for this franchise, it means the world.”
Both Raptor stars Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry will showcase their talents in the all-star game on Feb. 16.
This year’s game will be different due to a number of rule changes made by the NBA in tribute to late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
The community organization selected by the winner of each of the first three quarters will receive $100,000 per quarter to sum up $300,000 donated to charity for those three quarters.
The winner of each of the first three quarters will be the team with the higher score at the end of the 12-minute quarter.
After each quarter the scores will reset to zero and then summed up in the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter will also have no time limit and will be first to 24 points, Kobe’s jersey number.
The winning team will earn $200,000 for its community organization.
On Feb. 6, Lowry will find out who his team captain will be for the all-star game between team Lebron James or team Giannis Antetokounmpo.