Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan were all smiles on Friday morning during All-Star media availability. It turns out getting to participate in All-Star weekend at home with one of your best friends is pretty fun.
“It's home,” Lowry said. “It's my home city and where I play every single night. I can play host, unofficial host. But it's just one thing to be able to represent the team, the country, the city, like I do every single night I step on that floor.”
Having the All-Star game in Toronto, the first time the weekend has been held outside of the United States, is a big deal for the organization and the city, and DeRozan and Lowry both recognize it. For DeRozan especially, the weekend serves as a reminder of just how far the team has come since he was drafted by the Raptors in 2009.
This is DeRozan’s second All-Star selection. After suffering the first serious injury of his career a season ago, he doesn’t take being named a reserve for granted. With the Raptors second in the Eastern Conference and holding a 35-17 record at the break, the weekend provides an opportunity to appreciate what has been accomplished before the focus returns to finishing the regular season strong.
“You have to enjoy it, especially knowing how far you’ve come and how far the city and the team, everything has come,” DeRozan said. “You’ve got to enjoy, sit back and understand, all this hard work [pays off.]”
The weekend also means taking time to reflect on the journey to becoming a two-time All-Star. DeRozan recalled not having a passport prior to being drafted. He credited the move to Toronto, a city he knew nothing about before the Raptors selected him, with helping him to mature quickly. One of the first things he learned about the city was how passionate its fan base was, even through struggles early in his career. Looking around the room at his fellow All-Stars, celebrating their accomplishments in the city that’s become his own means something to DeRozan.
“For me it means a lot,” DeRozan said. “For how far I’ve come with the organization, watching it grow, year in and year out, to having the All-Star game here, it’s definitely big. The whole city, the country deserves it and I think the world gets a chance to really recognize Toronto.”
The nightly play of DeRozan and Lowry has helped Toronto to steadily creep up the standings and power rankings. While the two have built up a strong, cohesive chemistry on the court, it’s impossible to ignore their friendship off it.
“We’re so different, but sometimes when you’re so different it’s a positive,” DeRozan said. “It just helps. Our relationship that we have off the court, outside of basketball, take away basketball, that’s my friend. I think that translates once we step out on the court. We have no hidden agendas. We want to see one another strive.”
The highlight of the availability session was when Lowry grabbed a mic to yell over to DeRozan halfway across the room, asking for a shout out. DeRozan, with a huge grin on his face, yelled right back, “Who gave this man the mic? Leave me alone. Not right now. Get off the mic. Somebody, cut his mic.”
When the two aren’t trying to one up the other, the praise flows freely.
“I’m proud of him being a starter twice,” DeRozan said. “For us to share that moment together, I know we’re definitely going to tell our kids [about it one day]. It’s big for them to be a part of it, too. My daughter, his son, they’re close. Just to experience this with your kids, for them to see something like this, it’s cool.”
Lowry is excited to have his friends and family celebrate with him this weekend and then see him on his home floor in Toronto, but especially to share the experience with his fellow backcourt mate.
“It’s a special time,” Lowry said. “It means the world because we’re leaders of our team. We put our blood, sweat and tears into the organization. It’s just been good. It's been a good season so far.”