Kyle Lowry
Philadelphia 76ers

Player Facts

Height: 6'0"
Weight: 196lbs.

Wingspan: 6'2"

Date of Birth: Mar 25, 1986
College Experience: Villanova (2 years)

Selections

All Star: 6
All-NBA: 1
All-Defensive: 0

Player Grades

Speed/Explosiveness: 7
Physical Strength: 8
Positional Size: 5
Positional Wingspan: 5
Paint Scoring: 5
Midrange Scoring: 6
Three-Point Scoring: 8
Dribbling: 8
Passing: 9
Perimeter Defense: 8
Interior Defense: 6
Rebounding: 6

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JUMP TO SECTION

> Intro

> Basketball IQ

> Three-Point Sniper

> Pushing the Pace

> Read-and-React Approach

> Off-Ball Talents

> Playmaking Prowess

> Crashing In

> Disruptive Defense

> Providing Resistance in the Post

> Non-Elite PG Shot Creation

> Occasional Reluctance to Shoot

> Paint Struggles

> Beacon Bacon

>Link to Player Contract & Salary Info

*All short clips courtesy of Smart Highlights, NF, MaxaMillion711 & Z.Highlights (YouTube)

*All statistical data courtesy of NBA Advanced Stats

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STRENGTHS

Intro

The 6-foot guard out of Villanova has had a long career while playing at a high level. His counting stats like points, assists, threes made and steals have been one indicator of his value. However, the little things he does on a nightly basis transcend the box score yet still contribute heavily towards winning basketball.

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Basketball IQ

On the offensive end, Lowry is clever in using his stocky frame and low center of gravity to get into the chest of larger help defenders before springing back towards the basket. With just a 6'2" wingspan, he doesn't have the luxury of extending the ball out and away from rim-protectors.

This limits their ability to block or contest his layup attempt and also explains his knack for getting to the free throw line. He is consistently north of 80 percent once he gets there over his career.

Lowry is constantly aware of even the smallest of details in the midst of the game. This awareness encompasses data points such as how many team fouls the opponent has, and how many personal fouls each player has.

Armed with the knowledge, Kyle craftily exploits whatever advantage he has identified. All players have some level of game awareness of course, but only basketball geniuses like Kyle, Chris Paul, and LeBron James have it to this high a degree. Players like Lowry are the definition of contributing beyond the box score.

Three-Point Sniper

From beyond the arc, Lowry is a solid above-average shooter. Always a reliable shooter on a high volume of attempts, long-distance shooting is a key pillar within his offensive package. Lowry has a propensity to shoot off-the-dribble threes, with 34.7% of his threes made being unassisted in 2021-2022.

Pushing the Pace

Lowry is an opportunistic lead guard who quarterbacks his offense during transition and semi-transition chances. He scans the floor for teammates streaking to the basket. Common recipients throughout his Raptors tenure included Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, and DeMar DeRozan.

If a transition outlet pass is not immediately available, Lowry pushes the ball with pace into the frontcourt which manufactures opportunities for himself and others as the defense is reeling. Playing this way is just one component that helps Kyle prop up the bench units he leads.

He also utilizes the pull-up transition/late break three if the defense sags off him, ninth in the league in 2017-2018 pull-up threes attempted at a proficient 40% clip. 2021-2022 had him at just over 38% on these shots.

Read-and-React Approach

Lowry demonstrates his high basketball intellect in the way that he reacts to opposing defenses. For example, if the opposing big is in a moderate-to-deep drop when guarding Lowry's pick-and-roll, he doesn't hesitate to take the open jumper that is available. 2019-2020 saw him place in the 88th percentile for his scoring productivity when initiating the screen-and-roll.

He also does a good job of leveraging his hop into a catch or after receiving a dribble handoff which allows him to create momentum going downhill. Lowry is quite the versatile scoring threat at these junctures.

Kyle is particularly lethal when he catches his defender trailing him in the play. From this advantageous position, he is adept at keeping his man at bay with his body as he shields the basketball. Alternatively, Lowry can quickly rise up for the long-range shot before his man can get up to contest.

Off-Ball Talents

Kyle remains highly effective when playing off-the-ball. Next to the primary option Kawhi Leonard in 2018-2019, Lowry shot 38.3% on his catch-and-shoot threes. In 2020-2021, he hit 41.6% of these triples off-the-catch.

In addition to the floor spacing, he moves without the basketball to create positive things for the team offense within the half-court. He's one of the most willing and effective off-ball screeners as a guard.

Playmaking Prowess

Lowry is widely considered a top-fifteen passer in the NBA, statistically supported by his consistent presence within the assists per game leaders. He patiently waits for the right pass to become available within the flow and structure of the offense. Kyle is an ambidextrous passer as well.

The cross-court pass, the drop-off to the dunker spot, the pocket pass, and the delivery to the popping screen-setter are all well within his passing arsenal. He is also a strong outlet passer, garnering a high volume of opportunities to showcase this gift thanks to his willingness to crash the defensive glass.

He often recognizes an offensive opportunity before it materializes, allowing him to spoon-feed teammates before they even realize that they're open. Lowry also excels at manipulating the opposing defense, particularly their pick-and-roll coverage. The Villanova product is a playmaking marvel as the initiator of these actions.

By weaponizing his dribble with a series of savvy hesitations and changes of pace, Lowry is routinely able to garner the attention of the opposing big. This frees up a passing window for Lowry to thread the needle to his roll man. Overall, Lowry landed fourth in the league with 20.7 assist points created per game in 2018-2019, ahead of Trae Young and Ben Simmons.

Crashing In

Lowry is a good rebounder for both his size and his position, leveraging his physical strength, tenacity, and body positioning to reel in boards. He also tends to poke the ball away from unsuspecting defenders after they pull down a rebound. His ability to track down longer caroms adds value as well.

Disruptive Defense

On the defensive end, his status as a cerebral guard is showcased. He excellently times his aggressive double-teaming of bigs who are dribbling far from their comfort zones. Also, he takes efficient routes while navigating around screeners in order to chase shooters. He's a highly intuitive off-ball defender who makes a large impact at his size.

Lowry, with his combination of anticipation and fearlessness, is consistently among the league leaders in charges drawn per season. He led the league with 37 charges drawn in the 2017-2018 regular season. More recently, in 2020-2021 he was drew the fourth-most charges despite playing in just 46 games.

Beyond the charge-drawing, Lowry exhibits his defensive intelligence in the form of consistently smart body positioning on this end. He is unequivocally one of the best off-ball guard defenders in the Association.

Kyle plays with a constantly revving motor on the defensive end, rarely taking possessions off. This is especially remarkable given his exorbitant offensive duties on most nights. These valiant efforts culminate in a player who is a difference-maker defending the fast break.

A statistical example of Lowry's relentlessness is his third-best 78 defensive loose balls recovered in 2018-2019 despite logging only 65 games. He doesn't hesitate to dive onto the hardwood in an all-out effort to secure 50-50 balls.

Lowry's defensive energy is apparent within his point of attack work. He has the strength and footwork to navigate high ball screens as well as any guard. This allows for him to squash several attempts to expose a favorable matchup for the opposing ball-handler. His strong body helps him out as he clamors over picks.

He held pick-and-roll ball-handlers he checked to 0.84 points per possession in 2018-2019. This mark was stingier than expert perimeter defenders such as Eric Bledsoe and Marcus Smart that year.

Providing Resistance in the Post

His physical strength also allows him to prevent opposing wings and bigs from taking advantage of him in the post after a switch. They are frequently forced to kick the ball back out for a repost or force up a shot that they are not comfortable with. Here and when he rotates to the paint to help, Lowry does a good job of going straight up to contest.

WEAKNESSES

Non-Elite PG Shot Creation

In isolation scenarios, Lowry pales in comparison to explosive guards like Damian Lillard or Russell Westbrook. He lacks the traditional burst and blow-by ability of other NBA point guards.

This issue is compounded by his lack of size, standing at 6-feet. When even a slow-footed big gets switched onto him, he can struggle with beating him off the dribble on a drive to the basket.

Occasional Reluctance to Shoot

Lowry's awareness of his lack of explosiveness has tangible effects on his on-court decision making. Specifically, it is seen through his recurring passiveness when faced with a decision point. This level of predictability allows opposing defenses to load up on the pass since Lowry has minimized his threat as a scorer, failing to weaponize that element of his game.

Paint Struggles

Lowry will rarely deploy his floater when attacking even if that shot is presented to him. He'll dribble into traffic and force up contested paint-attempts at times.

He tends to be largely binary in his shot selection patterns (either a three-point attempt or a layup). Unfortunately for him, Lowry has typically ranked towards the bottom of the league in terms of field goal percentage in the paint.

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Beacon Bacon

Lowry was a late bloomer in the NBA, becoming an All Star for the first time in his ninth NBA season at the age of 28