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Kyle Lowry: 5 potential landing spots in free agency

By Gerald Bourguet

Jan 18, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) in action against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Philadelphia 76ers won 94-89. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) in action against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Philadelphia 76ers won 94-89. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Kyle Lowry
Dec 23, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) is congratulated by teammate guard DeMar DeRozan (10) after a basket in the fourth quarter against the Utah Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Toronto Raptors defeated the Utah Jazz 104-98. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Toronto Raptors

Say what you want about the Toronto Raptors‘ playoff futility, but as The Ringer‘s Jonathan Tjarks points out, there has to be something in between the Warriors/Cavaliers behemoths and the bottom-feeders that are just biding their time until the reign of terror is over. There’s still value in being a perennial 50-win team, even if it doesn’t result in a ring.

For starters, Toronto has been good to Kyle Lowry, and vice-versa. He’s formed a legitimate brotherhood with his backcourt mate DeMar DeRozan, and though their annual playoff struggles tend to overshadow their regular season success, those fans up North would be devastated to see him leave this summer.

This has been the best period in franchise history for the Raptors, bar none. Bringing back Lowry, Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker/Patrick Patterson wouldn’t guarantee this group anything. In fact, as we saw this year, the Raptors may not even be the second-best team in the East anymore.

But there’s value in being a pseudo-contender that’s one piece (or a few) away. Toronto can also offer Lowry a five-year deal worth more than $200 million, which clearly trumps the four-year, $153 million max deal anyone else can put on the table.

That may not be in their best interest based on GM Masai Ujiri’s end-of-season comments, but the team also remains committed to bringing him back. Maybe the Raptors never find a way to get past LeBron, but there are worse fates than being the face of a franchise and a regular threat to make the conference finals while being paid $200 million.