Toronto Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry will miss Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers with back soreness. Fred VanVleet will start in Lowry's place, according to the Raptors.

Lowry played 34 minutes in Toronto's last game against the Milwaukee Bucks, a 105-92 loss on Thursday. The 32-year-old had 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting in the defeat.

The veteran point guard has dealt with a handful of nagging injuries this season. This will be Lowry's 12th missed game, and it's unclear just how much time he may miss with this latest malady.

For the season, Lowry is averaging 14.1 points, 9.2 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 34.3 minutes per game. He's shooting 40.9 percent from the field and 31.9 percent on 3-pointers.

While the Raptors will miss Kyle Lowry against the Clippers, Fred VanVleet is a capable replacement at point guard. The 24-year-old out of Wichita State is averaging 10.4 points, 4.5 assists and 2.7 rebounds in 26.8 minutes per game. He's shooting 40.2 percent overall and a stellar 36.8 percent from 3-land.

Toronto will be looking to improve upon its 37-16 record this season, which is good for second place behind the Bucks in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors have slowed down a bit after holding the top spot for much of the year, but they're still comfortably in the No. 2 slot and two games behind Milwaukee.