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Toronto Raptors: Playing buy or sell with 2017 free agents

By Tevin Williams

Apr 18, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) talks with forward Serge Ibaka (9) after beating Milwaukee Bucks 106-100 in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 18, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) talks with forward Serge Ibaka (9) after beating Milwaukee Bucks 106-100 in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 22, 2017; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry (7) looks on against the Phoenix Suns at Air Canada Centre. The Suns beat the Raptors 115-103. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /

Kyle Lowry

Kyle Lowry and backcourt mate DeMar DeRozan have brought the Toronto Raptors the most sustained success that they’ve ever had as a franchise. Lowry, a late bloomer, didn’t average 20 points per game until his 10th season. He is now 31 years old, and this free agency period will likely be his last shot at a massive contract.

I’m not sure that team president Masai Ujiri feels safe enough to go into full rebuild mode, but that is exactly what he should do. If the Raptors choose to re-sign both Ibaka and Lowry, they will meet the same fate in the 2018 NBA Playoffs that they have over the past few seasons.

Is a 31-year-old point guard worth a max contract?

If they sign Lowry to a five-year, $200 million deal, the last two or three years of that contract are going to hurt Toronto. Point guards in the NBA do not tend to age well. Tony Parker had arguably his best season at 30 years old, and he experienced a sharp decline from there. Now at 34 years old, he is just a shell of his former self.

Lowry is in the same position now that Parker was in a few years ago. He just turned 31 coming out of the best statistical season of his career. Is Tony Parker worth $40 million a year right now? Not even close, and Lowry probably won’t be in three years either. It is not a wise decision to sign a non-elite, aging point guard to a max deal.

This contract will put Toronto in a terrible position in the future, where they’ll have an overpaid, aging core that never had a chance to win a title, and they will have to trade away young assets in order to unload massive contracts.

Verdict: Let Lowry walk

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