Kyle Lowry may currently lead the NBA with 11.1 assists per game, but there’s another type of team assist that’s not really spoken about all-too-often.
The 32-year-old Raptors guard is aware that his height disables him from momentum-swinging bloacks and dunks, but he uses that to another advantage:
According to FiveThirtyEight’s Chris Herring, Lowry has found his calling.
“I can’t normally block a shot, and I can’t energize my team with a crazy dunk. But I can take a charge at a big moment in a game, and I think my teammates appreciate me laying myself out there. That’s my energizing play.”
Lowry, in his 13th season in the League, has drawn an NBA-best 49 charges since the beginning of the 2017-18 season, according to Herring.
See below how his instincts kick in when he’s on D: