You know what they say, you either die a hero or stay long enough to become the villain. That phrase applies to nearly everybody, except if your name is Kyle Lowry. The longtime Raptor turned Miami Heat guard was a Raptor for nearly a decade, became a hero during his tenure, left for Miami, and is still revered as a legend. In hindsight, Lowry is the greatest Raptor of all time.
Often characterized as a “bulldog”, Lowry won over the hearts of the Toronto fans for his pestering, intense play, and was always seen giving his 110% on the court night-in and night-out. Coming as a depth piece in the Grievis Vasquez trade, Lowry wasn’t supposed to make the impact that he did. But he did.
Lowry would go on to lead the mid-2010s Raptors teams to playoff berths, and 50 win seasons, something the franchise hadn’t seen up until that point. With the help of Lowry, and sidekick Demar DeRozan, the Raptors would dominate in the regular season, but when it came playoff time, there was a trend emerging; they’d always come up short.
President Masai Ujiri is, and always will be an “all-in” type of guy. When a trade for Kawhi Leonard came up, Ujiri pulled the trigger sending DeRozan to the Spurs for a top-5 player in Leonard. It seems the combo of Leonard and Lowry was all the Raptors needed to capture a championship. They did that very season. The championship would only strengthen the fact that Lowry is the greatest Raptor to ever do it.
It seems Lowry makes an impact everywhere he goes, and this season with the Heat, Lowry has done just that. The Heat are first in the Eastern Conference and are probably the most dangerous team coming out of the East, and that is because Lowry’s intense play sets the tone for them, night-in and night-out.
On his return home to Toronto, Lowry was greeted with thunderous applause, one fitted for the king the is. The game took a backseat to the moment everybody was waiting for, for the legend to come back home to his court. Even though he wears a different jersey now, Lowry will forever be a Raptor.
With 16 points, Lowry had a decent game on his return back to Toronto, and the Heat were able to eke out a win, with a 114-109. There was another Heat player who had an amazing was Victor Oladipo, who exploded for 21 points in 27 minutes. It’s great to see that Oladipo is getting back into the groove of things after his injury, and with Oladipo at full force, I don’t see how anybody can stop the Heat in the playoffs.
Hopefully, Lowry, as well as the Heat, can capture another championship. That would be another legendary chapter in the legendary career of Kyle Lowry.