Who would win a Raptors-only track-and-field day? How good is Amir Johnson’s Celine Dion impression? When was the last time Dwane Casey cried at the movies? Every day until the season starts, we throw a Raptor in front of a green screen and ask him the tough questions. Today, Kyle Lowry wants someone to take him skiing.
Know Your Raptors: Lou Williams | Kyle Lowry | Bruno Caboclo | Chuck Hayes | Jonas Valanciunas | Amir Johnson | Tyler Hansbrough | Landry Fields | Terrence Ross | James Johnson | Patrick Patterson | Lucas Nogueira | DeMar DeRozan | Greivis Vasquez | Dwane Casey
A year ago, the Raptors were looking for an answer at point guard and, after seven seasons, Kyle Lowry was still looking for an NBA city he could call home. A year ago, the Raptors were looking for someone to step up and be a leader, and Kyle Lowry was hoping a franchise would commit to him—trust him to run the show and all that comes with it. A year ago today, it didn’t seem as though either would find what they were looking for in 2013-14.
But we all know how it turned out: Kyle Lowry went from a stop-gap replacement, an inherited piece from the previous regime, to the centrepiece of a turnaround that saw the Raptors return to the playoffs, capture a nation of fans and return to respectability, adopting the rugged identity of their starting point guard.
The Basketball Gods can be funny like that.
After turning down multiple offers and signing a 4-year deal with Toronto in the off-season, both Lowry and the Raptors confirmed what we all saw last year: this pairing just fits. And with an eye on a return to the playoffs and a point guard looking to prove that last season’s all star-worthy career year was no fluke, it feels like we’ve only just begun.
2013–14 Stats: 17.9 Pts/G, 4.7 Reb/G, 7.4 Ast/G, 42.3 FG%, 38.0 3P%, 36.2 Min/G