10:33am: Speaking today to reporters, Raptors president Masai Ujiri said Lowry has told him he wants to stay in Toronto and “I can only believe what he tells me” (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN 1050). Sportsnet’s Michael Grange adds (via Twitter) that Ujiri appears confident Lowry has “bought in,” but the dollars and years will need to be right for the relationship between the two sides to continue.
8:12am: Kyle Lowry quickly responded on Monday night to a report suggesting that other teams were being informed in mid-May that the veteran point guard had “zero interest” in re-signing with the Raptors. In a tweet, Lowry referred to the column from Bruce Arthur of The Toronto Star as “B.S.”
“I don’t do this ever but: Don’t believe what you hear!!” Lowry wrote. “Especially if it didn’t come from me, and that B.S. FOR SURE didn’t come from me.”
According to Arthur, multiple league sources say that Lowry “has been grumbling about dissatisfaction with the Raptors for months.” Arthur suggests that the Raptors don’t intend to offer Lowry a five-year deal, but adds that even if the team were willing to put a five-year, maximum salary offer on the table, the point guard’s stance in mid-May was that it wouldn’t keep him in Toronto.
Despite these seemingly explosive allegations, Arthur’s column ends by hinting that the Raptors and Lowry may yet work something out. The All-Star point guard is somewhat emotional, and has publicly expressed dissatisfaction with some coaching decisions in the past, even as he talks about how much he enjoys the city and the team. So the claim that he has been “grumbling” for months isn’t necessarily a bombshell.
Additionally, mid-May was right after the Raptors were unceremoniously swept out of the playoffs by Cleveland, with Lowry missing the series’ last two games, so it makes sense that he would be most frustrated with his situation at that point. Talk of blowing up the Raptors’ roster was impossible to avoid in the wake of the team’s playoff exit, but has quieted down somewhat in recent weeks.
With the Sixers having moved up in this year’s draft to nab Markelle Fultz, a potentially serious suitor for Lowry appears to be out of the mix, and there simply aren’t that many great fits for the veteran Raptor around the NBA. Most teams with cap room and a need at point guard are lottery clubs, and Lowry prefers to join a contender. But playoff clubs with a hole at the position would need to move things around to fit in Lowry, and there’s no guarantee they could make him a better pitch than the Raptors could — even if Toronto isn’t willing to go up to five years.