Kyle Lowry Comes 4th for the NBA's Teammate of the Year Honors
Not that anyone needed an award to reveal just how great Kyle Lowry is as a teammate, but the 35-year-old Toronto Raptors guard was among the top vote-getters for the 2020-21 Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award.
Lowry finished fourth in the voting with 856 points, 30 first-place votes, 37 second-place votes, 35 third-place votes, 32 fourth-place votes, and 26 fifth-place votes. He fell just 37 points behind Miami's Udonis Haslem who was third in the voting.
Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard took home the honors with 40 first-place votes and 1,012 total points. Fellow Western Conference guard Chris Paul claimed the plurality of the 303 first-place votes with 47, but finished with 1,001 total points, 11 fewer than Lillard.
No Raptors player has ever won the award, though former Raptor Vince Carter claimed the honor in 2015-16 while playing for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Lowry played in just 46 of Toronto's 72 games this season. He averaged 17.2 points, 7.3 assists, and 5.4 rebounds before nagging injuries and Toronto's desire to rest their aging point guard kept him sidelined for all but nine games after the March 25th NBA trade deadline.
Even in his mid-30s, it's clear Lowry can still make a difference both on and off the court. It's why he'll certainly be paid handsomely this summer as he heads into unrestricted free agency in what's now considered a relatively weak free agency class.
Further Reading
Norman Powell sees similarities in 2021 Trail Blazers and 2019 Raptors
Potential NHL cross-border approval may be a sign of hope for Raptors
Trail Blazers fans chant Norman Powell's name after career night
