Sporting News’ Sean Deveney recently wrote about the Raptors’ troubles with ball-movement this season. He illustrates rather well the impact Kyle Lowry has on the floor, even with Fred VanVleet filling in admirably for the four-time All-Star. In the Raptors’ recent losses, you most definitely noticed this issue too.
In the 23 games Lowry appeared before December 1st, the Raptors as a team shot the three-ball at about a league average clip — 35.3 percent — on 33.7 attempts (making 11.9 threes per game). This helped them secure one of the top offensive ratings in the league, and if sustained, Toronto would’ve ranked among the league’s best offenses in multiple categories.