As the Raptors returned from the all-star break this week, they were a franchise clouded in an undeniable period of uncertainty — and not only the kind that accompanies COVID protocols that kept 60 per cent of the starting lineup out of Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks.
This week’s top headline might have sounded reassuring enough: Pending free-agent Kyle Lowry, whose career accomplishments in a Toronto uniform are unmatched, vowed to retire a Raptor. And fair enough. That was the gist of what Lowry said. But that didn’t exactly add up to a commitment to take a hometown discount to re-sign as a free agent this summer – which, barring the floor falling out on the market for Lowry’s services, is likely what would be required for the soon-to-be 35-year-old point guard to return to Toronto next season.