The viability of Kyle Lowry’s future with the Toronto Raptors has been a question for months, ever since GM Masai Ujiri supposedly initiated a fire sale of his team’s veteran stalwarts by trading Rudy Gay. But it didn’t turn out that way, obviously, and Lowry’s resurgence as one of the league’s best two-way players was a major reason behind the Raptors’ second-half rise. With free agency set to begin in a matter of hours, Ujiri will reportedly waste no time in trying to secure Lowry for the long-haul.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski, Ujiri will engage in contract discussions with Lowry as tonight’s clock ticks to July 1st.
Expect Toronto GM Masai Ujiri to make aggressive bid to keep Kyle Lowry at midnight, try to wrap up deal before Miami/Houston can engage.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) June 30, 2014
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The Raptors are working from a position of strength with Lowry. They won’t be out-bid for his services by the Miami Heat and Houston Rockets at this point, two teams that are known to covet Lowry but lack the financial wiggle room – the Heat will surely agree to terms with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh first – to offer him more money than Toronto. And likewise, the Raptors can afford Lowry on-court responsibility that the Heat and Rockets simply can’t match.
But that’s a double-edged sword. Lowry wants to play for a winner, and Miami and Houston offer all free agents a better chance to do so than any team scouring the market for help. That they both happen to need help at point guard surely won’t be lost on Lowry, either.
It’s a smart move by Ujiri to try and re-sign Lowry as soon as possible, with hopes that a lucrative contract offer in-hand will trump the potential of ones from Miami and Houston. If winning big is really Lowry’s utmost priority, though, he’s better off playing the free agency game.
Will Lowry re-sign with the Raptors?
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