Lowry frustrated with shooting slump: 'I've got to pick this sh-- up'
Toronto Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry has picked the absolute worst time to go through a shooting slump, and with his team now down 1-0 in the Eastern Conference semifinals, the pressure is on to find a quick fix.
Following the defeat, Lowry went up to the practice court and started shooting around. When he appeared in front of the media afterward, he still had the ball in his hands.
Lowry on his practice gym shooting: "I shoot the ball well when I'm by myself, but ... I'm by myself."
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) May 4, 2016
"It sucks that I'm playing this bad when all eyes are on me, because I know I'm way better than this," the 30-year-old veteran said when asked about his shooting woes. "So I've got to pick this shit up."
Lowry scored just seven points in 42 minutes of action in a 102-96 Game 1 loss to the Miami Heat on Tuesday night at the Air Canada Centre, converting 3-of-13 from the field and 1-of-7 from 3-point range. He has yet to nail over 40 percent of his shots in a game during the playoffs, and has only hit 42 percent or better once since March 20.
"(I'm) trying to just get the touch back. I don't know where it's at, it's kind of mind-boggling right now, it's frustrating."
Lowry isn't one to make excuses, and is certainly aware of the negative criticism he's been receiving as he continues to search for a way out of his collapse in efficiency.
"I'm not going to shy away from criticism," he said. "I want to continue to be aggressive, shoot, and take the onus. I know I'm not playing well."
His astounding halfcourt heave at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime bought the Raptors five extra minutes to potentially snag a victory from the jaws of defeat. Since that ultimately didn't happen, Lowry couldn't care less about it.
"It didn't mean anything," he added. "We lost the game."
Once his media responsibilities had been fulfilled, the two-time All-Star went straight back to shooting.
Related: Lonely Lowry gets shots up 2 hours after Game 1 loss
Lowry is averaging 13 points, 7.4 assists, and 4.1 rebounds during the playoffs, hitting 30.6 percent from the field and a putrid 16 percent from behind the arc.