Kyle Lowry is perhaps the best player in the history of Toronto Raptors. The six-time All-Star was, apart from Kawhi Leonard, the most important part of the team’s 2019 championship, but with Lowry now 34 years old and the Raptors under .500, it may be time for the two sides to have their own separate ways. According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report: “There is a portion of the Raptors staff, league sources said, who believe the franchise should say goodbye to its beloved All-Star and begin Toronto’s next chapter in all seriousness.”
On paper, such a step would make sense. The incentive to keep a franchise icon in place is not as strong with the Raptors playing in Tampa Bay rather than Toronto this season. Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet are only 26. OG Anunoby is 23. The three of them can form the core of a long-term winner, but only if the rest of the roster is properly managed. Toronto may have maximum space this off-season, but only if it lets Lowry run in free throws. If he pays him in now, the Raptors can give him the assets they need to replace him.
Finding a trading partner would be a somewhat difficult undertaking from a limited perspective. Lowry is earning $ 30 million this season, and it’s not easy to adjust such a solid number during a pandemic season. This is especially true given the number of likely suitors with a hard limit. Of the 29 teams Lowry could possibly handle with Lowry, 17 are due to their tough games thanks to their outfield. Some of these teams have more than enough space below the line to move, but others, like the Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks, are pushed against the apron as before. This does not prevent them from entering into an agreement, but it does make the aggregation of multiple salaries to reach Lowry’s extremely difficult, as there must be room left to fill in the list.
But a player of Lowry’s talents will have many suitors. The Clippers, who do not have a traditional point guard, would make sense if they could make the money work, although their lack of negotiable first-round would complicate a deal. The Miami Heat are in a similar position. Lowry’s hometown team, the Philadelphia 76ers, can use a more traditional points screen, and unlike the Clippers and Heat, they are not difficult.
What Toronto would demand in such an agreement remains unclear. In the form of a sellers market, Toronto may have the best player on the board. So they would expect to fetch a decent price for Lowry in terms of draft assets and young talent, should they decide to move him. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer reported Monday that they are interested in Andre Drummond. This indicates a desire to remain competitive with players who are still in or near their premium.
But the Raptors returned to the playoffs after a slow start. They are currently holding the number 9 series in the Eastern Conference. Had that been the case, they would at least have had a chance to reach the national season through the playoffs. This is hardly what the Raptors expected after years of strife, but if the goal continues to win at all costs, Lowry is undoubtedly an essential gear in the business. However, if the Raptors look ahead to a future without Lowry, an agreement is now best for all involved.