Toronto Raptors: 3 big questions heading into 2019-20

3. What does Lowry have left?

The Toronto Raptors deployed superstars 1 and 1A pre-Kawhi Leonard in Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, respectively. That situation changed out of necessity when Leonard arrived, with the point guard deferring to the future NBA Finals MVP.

Leonard is gone now, which opens up a massive production hole for the Raptors. The organization hopes some of the younger players will fill the gap (more on that later), but it also gives an opportunity for Lowry to seize stardom once more.

By no means is Lowry coming off a bad season. He fully developed into being a distributor, the expected role of someone at his position. His 8.7 assists per game were a career high and ranked second in the league, trailing only Russell Westbrook.

Lowry’s scoring took a step back, however. He averaged 14.2 points per game, his lowest output since his first season in Toronto. That trailed Leonard, Pascal Siakam, and Serge Ibaka on the team.

Furthermore, Lowry matched Leonard in playing time for the season, suggesting the scoring dip may become a permanent feature for Lowry.

Lowry is 33 years old and entering the final year of the big extension he signed before the 2017-18 campaign. This may be the last gasp of one of Toronto’s greatest players in franchise history.