Sixers Target Kyle Lowry Remains With Raptors After Trade Deadline
After months of seeing his name in trade rumors, Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry isn't going anywhere after all. Leading up to the trade deadline on Thursday, it seemed Lowry's departure was inevitable. As the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, and the Los Angeles Lakers all had offers out for him, Toronto wasn't satisfied.
Roughly 20 minutes before the deadline went into effect on Thursday afternoon, the Raptors asked for final offers from all teams. Apparently, none of the available deals moved the needle for the Raptors. Therefore, they kept Lowry past the deadline.
Former Houston Rockets General Manager and current President of Basketball Operations for the Sixers Daryl Morey is quite familiar with Lowry. Back in 2008-2009, Morey traded with the Memphis Grizzlies to land Lowry.
Lowry played in Houston for four seasons. By Lowry's third season with the Rockets, he finally became a starter. After a few solid years in Houston, Lowry hit the NBA free agency market to see what kind of interest he could draw from teams around the league. He ended up inking a four-year, $48 million contract with the Toronto Raptors.
In Memphis and Houston, Lowry had to prove himself as a late first-round selection who was unhappy with his role at times. When he arrived in Toronto, Lowry became the face of the franchise. At this point, Lowry is nothing short of a Raptors legend.
For the last eight seasons, Lowry played for the Raptors. During his stint, he's made the Eastern Conference All-Star team six times and helped them win the NBA Finals for the first time back in 2019.
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Following the Raptors' Wednesday night matchup against the Denver Nuggets, Lowry seemed to believe his time in Toronto was coming to an end. After a long day on Thursday, it turns out that's not the case. Although Lowry drew a lot of interest, the 35-year-old North Philly native can now celebrate his birthday without worrying about where his next move is as he remains with the Raptors for the rest of the year.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.
