Toronto Raptors: 2017-18 NBA season preview

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(Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images) /

Storyline No. 1: Can Lowry and DeRozan keep it up?

Everyone knows DeRozan had a career year in 2016-17. Not as many realize that Lowry did, too.

Fewer, still, realize that Lowry left his previous bests further behind than DeRozan. The point guard ended the season with a true-shooting percentage of 62.3; his previous high was 57.8 percent.

DeRozan experienced greater volume increase (27.3 points, besting a high of 23.5), and became one of the league’s best inside-the-arc players. However, this corresponded with a 3-point percentage of 26.6, his worst in five years.

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It is hard to say who is more likely to regress. Both have strong arguments in both directions.

As Lowry has matured, he has become one of the most naturally efficient players in the league. He has honed his outside shot (losing weight helped), but it is more his understanding of all the ways to get open threes that led to numbers (3.2 mades 3s on 41.2 percent shooting) that resembled a young Stephen Curry. He has also become such a clever prober and finisher, reading the defense and changing pace a la Chris Paul.

DeRozan has certainly upped his I.Q., but his reliance on typically low-efficiency shots reduces his margin for error. A slowed down Lowry will still feast on layups and open 3s, while DeRozan minus a smidgen of burst will struggle to rise up from 15 or force his way to the line with consistency.

On the other hand, DeRozan is 28, and still has theoretical room to grow as a shooter. Lowry is 31, not super durable, and can seemingly only decline from outside.

For Toronto, getting the same net impact in 2017-18 as they did from each of these guys last year would be a huge win.

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