Kyle Lowry named Eastern Conference player of the month, history suggests All-Star nod is next

Kyle Lowry is the NBA's Eastern Conference player of the month for December, which bodes well for his chances of representing the Raptors at February's All-Star game in New York.

Lowry averaged 22.3 points, 8.9 assists and 4.2 rebounds and shot 46.3% from the field and 40.5% from three in 15 games in December as Toronto rolled to an 11-4 record without DeMar DeRozan,who missed the entire month with a groin injury.

Only twice over the past 10 years has a player that was awarded player of the month honours in November, December, and January not been named an All-Star: Zach Randolph in 2010-11 and Chris Webber, who was traded mid-season, in 2004-05.

Don't expect Lowry to join that short list. The Raptors' point guard has been playing at an All-Star level all season and he elevated his game when DeRozan, an All-Star last year, went down.

Kyle Lowry, player of the month sounds nice. Kyle Lowry, NBA All-Star sounds even better. It won't be long before the latter becomes a reality.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter @israelfehr.