We need to talk about Kyle Lowry and why it’s so significant that he’s going to the NBA All-Star Game for the fifth time – even if you can make an argument he doesn’t deserve to be there.
Because while it won’t make Kawhi Leonard any more inclined to sign here, it is a reflection that Toronto and the Raptors are something more than an NBA outpost which, given the whining in this city over the league’s ‘snubbing’ of a Christmas Day network appearance, seems to be something that continues to need mentioning.
Think about it: when Lowry came to the Raptors he was more or less tabbed as being a slightly out of shape malcontent – not a coach-killer, per se, but certainly a brooding, moody sour puss. The Raptors apparently thought he was a bit of a too-round peg too, since Masai Ujiri effectively traded him to the New York Knicks only to have Knicks owner James Dolan nix the deal. Since then, he’s been an elected All-Star starter twice and been named as a reserve by Eastern Conference coaches on three other occasions.
In a social league where assistant coaches move from team to team and everybody talks to everybody, it seems the word is out on Lowry. And it’s good enough that with even the most miserable three-point percentage since he became an NBA starter, they think enough of him to pick him ahead of D’Angelo Russell (or at least dislike him less than Jimmy Butler.)
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At any rate, Lowry and Chauncy Billups are the only two players to be named All-Stars at least five times after failing to earn a trip in their first eight seasons. It has been one of the most remarkable rehabilitations of reputation in Toronto sports history, and while it’s Lowry and his coaches (particularly Dwane Casey) who deserve credit, it says something about the way this city and fan base will have a player’s back. It says that a guy can not only build a career here but perhaps more importantly (in a league where players come in at a young age) resurrect a career.
There is a currency to that, I think, that needs to be talked about. It won’t be enough to get the free-agent alpha dogs to sign in Toronto… but it ought to get the attention of a lot of other players.
And if you’re still of a mind to worry, perhaps that esteem in which coaches hold Lowry augers well for a potential off-season move. Because if the Raptors don’t at least win the Eastern Conference, my guess is the odds of Lowry returning are about the same as Leonard, even with that $34 million cap-hit.
NOW TWEET THIS
In which we wonder if Bryce Harper or Manny Machado might pull an A-Rod… salute the Shai-Hey! Kid… name-drop Pelle Lindbergh… wonder if the Habs are cooking up a deal… start the countdown to Devon Travis’ departure… and celebrate our NFL media breathren, who are free once again to deal with the league’s moral corruption.
• When Alex Rodriguez signed his 10-year, $252-million free-agent deal with the Rangers, he was joining a team coming off a 71-91 2000 season. Be cool to see the 66-win Padres pull off either a Bryce Harper or Manny Machado signing #bold
• It’s one thing for a rookie to make his mark on a crap team, but the Clippers’ Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is second among rookie scorers on teams over .500 and only Larry Bird and Kyrie Irving can match the Hamilton, Ont., native’s points, rebounds, assists and shooting splits #ohcanada
• Flyers goaltending is the gift that keeps on giving, so it’s notable Carter Hart is the first goalie to have a six-game winning streak before his 21st birthday since Carey Price went 7-0 in 2008 and that he’s just three games shy of Pelle Lindbergh’s club record in ’82-83 #finally
• The likelihood of Auston Matthews getting offer-sheeted surpasses that of Mitch Marner, especially considering whispers about his relationship with Mike Babcock. Getting Matthews done always was priority A-1. I’ll take the centre over the winger any day #priorities
• I love Brian Burke, but c’mon, the Hurricanes’ post-game celebrations beat the hell out of the half-hearted raised sticks salute at the end of a home win. Next up? Somebody come up with something better than the skate-by, glove-tapping after every goal #flyyourfreakflag
• The Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe duly noted that Marc Bergevin’s presence at MTS Centre Saturday could mean he was scouting the Canadiens’ next two opponents. On the other hand… Winnipeg on Feb. 2? Surely an underling could have gone if it was just advance scouting #coldstove
• The acquisition of switch-hitting Freddy Galvis by the Blue Jays will likely end up having more of an impact on Devon Travis than Lourdes Gurriel Jr. In fact, I’ll be surprised if Travis comes north with the team #secondthoughts
• This is a good day for the NFL’s media fan boys, who can go back to the usual carping about concussions, the toll of the game, its crypto-fascist politics, misbehaving owners and players before starting to feed the beast all over again #amorality
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THE ENDGAME
So, I spent some time reading Tom Verducci’s typically excellent piece from a few weeks ago talking about the new ‘gig economy’ of Major League Baseball.
In it, he makes the case that young, versatile players are helping dig the graves for older, mid-30ish players. Just a further example of how youth is being served, which is the basic storyline in every sport these days. With that in mind, I found it intriguing that the Super Bowl was for much of the time a matchup between 66-year-old Patriots head coach and defensive genius Bill Belichick and the Los Angeles Rams 71-year-old defensive co-ordinator Wade Phillips. Belichick won of course (really, giving Belichick two weeks to prepare for a callow quarterback seems unfair) and so now the off-season can commence with a bunch of co-ordinators in their 40s signing on as head coaches with other teams.
The search for another whiz kid like Sean McVay will continue and the 66-year-old dude and his 41-year-old quarterback will be comparing ring sizes and resting up before pursuing another title. Tony Romo called the Patriots "an old-school football team in a new school league." They laugh in the face of Father Time.
Jeff Blair hosts The Jeff Blair Show from 9 a.m.-Noon ET on Sportsnet 590 The Fan.
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