Kyle Lowry
The availability of Kyle Lowry could very well depend on how the Toronto Raptors perform in this year’s postseason. The Raptors have developed a reputation for choking in the playoffs, but with no LeBron James in the Eastern Conference and Kawhi Leonard now in the team’s midst, this year could produce a different story.
If the Raptors make an appearance in the NBA Finals or if they somehow manage to keep Leonard this offseason and want to see what the team can continue to do, there’s a good chance that they’ll simply keep a hold of Lowry moving forward. After all, he has just one year left on his contract and has been a staple for the Raptors in recent seasons.
However, if Toronto is quickly bounced in the postseason or if Kawhi simply bolts this offseason as many project he will, then the Raptors might find themselves needing to finally scrap their current illustrious hopes, tear things down and rebuild anew. Part of said rebuild would almost certainly include dealing Lowry for young, promising assets.
One one hand, trading for Lowry would be an exciting prospect for the Jazz. The single year left on his contract would mitigate any long-term risk and it could very well make him quite attainable without having to give up too many pieces. It was also rumored a couple summers back that Lowry was interested in joining Utah’s ranks, so from a fit perspective he could be an ideal piece of the roster.
On the flip side, Lowry is having a pretty disappointing season in comparison to former years, is 33 years old and while the one-year contract gets rid of a risk of being financially handcuffed, it presents a new risk – the Jazz could give up worthwhile assets only to lose Lowry after a single year. Not only that, but Lowry has also faced some significant injury setbacks himself, and as he nears the home stretch of his career, there’s no telling how healthy he can remain.
Yet, even though Lowry is down to just 14.4 points per game on 41.5 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent shooting from deep, he’s putting up a career high 8.7 assists per game. In other words, he remains a thoroughly capable floor general that could work wonders at the point for the Jazz in terms of play-making and stability.
Furthermore, I strongly believe that at this point Lowry could benefit tremendously from a change of scenery. He’s had great moments this season and at times has looked great alongside Kawhi, but all year it’s felt as if his fit has been just slightly off. Bringing him into Quin Snyder’s system that is so focused on sharing the ball and getting the best shot could work wonders for Kyle’s efficiency moving forward.
He’d have a chance to thrive in the backcourt alongside Mitchell and just imagine how his assists could skyrocket with Rudy Gobert in the middle.
Lowry may not be quite as much of a game-changer as Conley, but he’d likely come at a lower price, would be less risk in terms of being locked into his contract and presumably has more interest in joining the Jazz. If the right package could be put into place as the Raptors potentially aim to rebuild, netting Kyle Lowry could provide an enormous boost for the Jazz at the point guard spot in 2019-20.