Kyle Lowry Finally Gets Recognition He Deserves, but Hardest Part Yet to Come

Kyle Lowry's ticket to New York City for the 2015 NBA All-Star Game had been signed, sealed and delivered for months. It was just a matter of whether the fans would vote him in as a starter for the Eastern Conference or if the decision would ultimately come down to the coaches. 

With the power of an entire nation standing firmly in his corner, Lowry tallied up enough votes (805,290) to pass Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat (789,839) in the final weeks. He will join John Wall of the Washington Wizards in the starting backcourt on Feb. 15.

He's the first Toronto Raptor since Chris Bosh in 2008 to start an All-Star Game and the fifth player in franchise history to receive the honor. 

“Thank you to the wonderful Raptors fans across the NBA, especially in Canada!” Lowry said in a statement, per Raptors.com. “I am amazed by your passion for our team and the support you have given me. When I re-signed here this summer I said one of the great things is being able to play for an entire country. This is further proof how really special that is.”

The push on social media for Lowry was mesmerizing. He received ringing endorsements from the likes of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. Raptors play-by-play man Matt Devlin made it a priority to push the hashtag #NBABallot every chance he had. It was cheesy, but effective. 

He didn't even need the over 30,000 votes that were left on the table when pop star Justin Bieber failed to use the appropriate hashtag in his now-infamous tweet. Drake—who many expected to play more of a role in gathering votes because of his global ambassador title— never made a peep on Twitter to his over 20 million followers. 

Lowry's starting nod goes way beyond just an outpouring of love from north of the border, though. You don't need to be Canadian to appreciate the hard work he's putting in for a team that continues to hover near the top of the East at 30-15. 

He's averaging career highs in points (19.6), rebounds (4.9) and assists (7.4) through 45 games. He's seventh in the East in scoring, fifth in three-pointers made (81) and third in assists, per ESPN.com. 

As he told Scoop Jackson of ESPN.com, Lowry wants to repay the organization that showed faith in him over the summer with a new contract by continuing to perform at the highest of levels:

"

I'm going to train hard, work hard, I'm going to make sure I put my team in a position to know that we are going to be able to win games. You know, if you get paid to do a job you should do it, no matter if … of course, things happen, injuries happen, you might miss a game or two and you are just unable to [play], but if you can, you should just go out there and do your job that you are getting paid to do. And for me, it's about that. I get paid to do a job that I love to do, so I'm going to go out there and give it my all every night.

"

He kept the team afloat during a 21-game stretch when swingman DeMar DeRozan was on the sidelines with a groin injury. The Raptors went 12-9 from Nov. 30 to Jan. 12 as Lowry averaged 21.8 points and 8.7 assists. He was even named NBA Player of the Month in December for his efforts. 

Matt Slocum/Associated Press

With all due respect to DeRozan, Lowry has catapulted himself over his 25-year-old teammate as the de facto No. 1 on the roster. He's the driving force behind everything the Raptors do on the hardwood, ranking 11th in win shares at 5.9. 

He's "the man" now.

That "title" carries a great deal of responsibility, though. Lowry is going to be held accountable more than ever should the Raptors fall on their faces in the coming months. 

“I’ve always been second fiddle, man, to everything,” he told Jonathan Abrams of Grantland back in September. “Everything. But I never believed that I was lesser than this person, that person, anybody. I always thought I was on the same level.”

You never have to worry about Lowry shying away from the spotlight or having a lapse in confidence. He's at his best when he knows the pressure is on. When that bulldog mentality takes over and the ball is in his hands, it's quite the sight to behold. 

That tenacity was on full display when the Raptors escaped the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia with a 91-86 win over the lowly 76ers on Jan. 23. Lowry scored 17 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, helping his team avoid an embarrassing defeat to one of the worst teams in the league.

"I feel like we need every win we can get," Lowry said after the game, per NBA.com. "We can't let games like this slip away from us. That's a hard-playing team, but we have a bigger goal."

The goal he's referring to is a deep run in the postseason. This group had its first taste of the NBA playoffs last year in an epic seven-game series with the Brooklyn Nets in the opening round, but now it wants more.

When asked what he learned from the Brooklyn series that he hopes to carry over into this year's playoffs, Lowry told Jackson: "Probably physicality. The mental part of it. Being able to fight through the mental part of every game and making those adjustments after every one. I think that's what I'm going to take with me into the playoffs this time."

It would be best to start building up that mental fortitude as soon as possible with 37 games remaining. There have been signs over the past month that the team is becoming complacent and unmotivated.

They lost four games in a row for the first time since Rudy Gay was traded to the Sacramento Kings from Dec. 30 to Jan. 8. It was a sense of adversity that the Raptors hadn't dealt with in quite a while. 

Lowry's numbers have taken a hit in the process, averaging 16.9 points and 6.9 assists on 37.1 percent shooting in January. He's hoisting up 6.9 three-pointers while shooting 31.1 percent from behind the arc.

He's tired. It's clear as day. He's settling on offense and getting beaten on the other end by more agile guards. If he's made of circuitry and wires, perhaps it's time to purchase a replacement battery. 

There's no rest for the weary, though. His mind and body will agree to disagree more times than a stubborn married couple with two polarizing personalities. You want Lowry to take it easy? Good luck with that. 

He's human. He'll show wear and tear on occasion because operating at 150 percent for 100 percent of the time will always take its toll. 

The ship is slowly righting itself as the Raptors ride a three-game winning streak. They're just half a game behind the Washington Wizards for the No. 2 seed in the conference. 

With DeRozan back in the lineup, Lowry doesn't need to be Superman as much. The cape is big enough for another player to fit into. 

On his relationship with DeRozan, per Abrams: 

"

You always ask for a team to be your team, right? Every single night, that team and your teammates are like, All right, you know you need to bring it for everybody else. And if you don’t bring it, they ain’t bringing it. So when you’re the leader, you’ve got to [be] mentally focused every night. Luckily, my backcourt mate [DeRozan], we get along. I say we’re co-leaders and we understand [that] sometimes, things aren’t going to go the right way … Every single night, we’re playing for each other.

"

They'll share the glory, but at the end of the day, the Raptors will be widely recognized as Lowry's team.

He's earned that distinction, just like he earned his All-Star spot. 

Christopher Walder is considered by many to be the "songbird of his generation" and the greatest center to have never played professional, collegiate, high school, house league or pickup basketball. His work has been published on Bleacher Report, SB Nation, Sports Illustrated, FanSided and several other online outlets. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports.

All statistics, unless otherwise noted, are courtesy of NBA.com/stats and Basketball-Reference.com