The Sixers’ Kyle Lowry will consider his legacy when he’s done playing, not a moment sooner: ‘I’ll reflect on it once I retire’

NEW YORK — Kyle Lowry has yet to reflect on the ways he defied the odds during his basketball journey.

The 76ers point guard wasn’t a McDonald’s All American after his senior season at Cardinal Dougherty High School in 2004. Some naysayers questioned his decision to turn professional after two seasons at Villanova in 2006. And even though the Memphis Grizzlies selected him 24th in that summer’s NBA draft, Lowry didn’t become a full-time starter until 2010-11 with the Houston Rockets.

Yet Lowry, who turns 38 on March 25, is in the midst of his 18th season and could be destined for the Hall of Fame.

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His resumé includes six consecutive All-Star selections as a member of the Toronto Raptors. In 2016, he became a third-team All-NBA selection and a gold-medal winner with the U.S. in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. He was the star point guard on Toronto’s 2019 NBA championship team, and his jersey also was retired by Villanova on Feb. 26, 2020.

So surely the product of 20th and Lehigh thinks about his long list of accomplishments, right?

“Not yet,” he said. “I’ll reflect on it once I retire. When I retire from the game of basketball, I will look at all the things that I’ve done and I’ve accomplished. Of course, I know what they are. I’ve never sat down and really thought about the things that I’ve done.

“I just continue to live in the moment where I can’t think about what I’ve done, what is there to do, you know? ‘Do you want to win a couple more championships or whatever I can win?’ But I never sat back and thought about it yet. The reason is because I’m still playing.”

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Lowry ranked 13th all-time in the NBA in three-pointers made (2,146) heading into Tuesday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets. He was 22nd in assists (6,926), tied for 57th in steals (1,451), and 124th in points (16,074).

He has averaged 8.0 points, 5.8 assists, and 1.0 steals through his first five games as a Sixer. The team captured two wins after inserting him into the starting lineup. Lowry was signed on Feb. 13 to be a backup point guard and mentor All-Star Tyrese Maxey, who will miss the Nets game with concussion-like symptoms. However, Lowry started alongside Maxey, Buddy Hield, Tobias Harris, and Mo Bamba against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday and Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.

Terquavion Smith and recent two-way signee Jeff Dowtin Jr. are with the Sixers in New York. Smith will provide point guard depth with Maxey back in Philly and Cameron Payne (illness) listed as questionable for the game as of Tuesday afternoon.

Dowtin has averaged 2.4 points, 1.2 assists, and 1.2 rebounds in 34 career NBA games with the Raptors, Golden State Warriors, Orlando Magic, and Milwaukee Bucks.

Twenty-five of those games came last season as a Raptor under current Sixers coach Nick Nurse.

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“He’s a good basketball player, like, really knows how to play,” Nurse said. “I was with him. He had some really, really, just solid, really solid games. He’s going to run the team. He’s a point guard, but he’s going to sneak up on you, too.

“He’ll get you that late shot-clock basket. He’ll get you that big three now and then. His shooting is improving, and [he is] a very good defender.”

The 6-foot-3, 185-pounder is averaging 18.4 points, 5.8 assists, and 1.1 steals in 17 games this season with the Delaware Blue Coats, the Sixers’ G League affiliate.

“Any time you have an opportunity to get back into the league, it’s a joy and an honor,” said Dowtin, who signed his two-way contract on Saturday. “It’s hard to make it in the NBA. But it’s even tougher to stay there. So for me to be able to have an opportunity to come back, you know, it just means a lot for me.

“I’m a little bit experienced here and there. So I’ve been around a couple of organizations. I kind of know how everything is going. And I’m just excited. I’m ready to get to work.”