Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry was named a reserve for the NBA all-star game on Thursday, his sixth time playing in the exhibition and the most in franchise history.
Lowry will join forward Pascal Siakam in Chicago, who was voted a starter for the game by fans, media and players.
He’s averaging 19.8 points, a team-high 7.4 assists (tied for eighth in the NBA) and 36.9 minutes in 36 games this season.
Lowry has scored 20 or more points 19 times and posted seven double-doubles with one triple-double this season.
He became Toronto’s all-time leader in assists (3,772) earlier this week, and already had the most three-point field goals (1,327) and steals (790).
Lowry ranks third in games played (533) and fourth in points (9,336) for the Raptors after being acquired in a trade from Houston on July 12, 2012.
A native of Philadelphia, Lowry was selected Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Dec. 16-22 — the fifth time he has received the honour as a Raptor.
He set season highs with 36 points Nov. 2 at Milwaukee and 15 assists Jan. 12 vs. San Antonio.
The 14 all-star game reserves were selected by the NBA’s 30 head coaches. The coaches voted for seven players in their respective conferences — two guards, three frontcourt players and two additional players at either position group. They were not permitted to vote for players from their own team.