The Toronto Raptors held a pair of press conferences on Friday morning to announce the re-signings of Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka.
After much speculation as to whether he would leave the franchise or not, Lowry signed a new three-year, $100-million contract last week to remain a member of the Raptors. The 31-year-old point guard and three-time all-star is coming off his best season as a pro, despite being sidelined for 20 regular season games and the final two games of the Raptors’ second-round series versus the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Ibaka, 27, was acquired from the Orlando Magic prior to the trade deadline last season in a deal for Terrence Ross. He showed flashes of the type of impact he can have on the floor with his near-elite rim protection and ability to stretch the floor beyond the three-point line. Ibaka also signed a three-year deal, worth a reported $65 million. He’ll now get a full training camp with the team, and will form a strong core alongside Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who signed a five-year deal last summer.
ALL-IN
“Thank you to the Raptors organization for bringing me back to the place I call home,” Lowry began his press conference. “Toronto was home. They believed in me and … gave me the opportunity to lead a team… Of course there were other teams that showed interest,” he said, “but at the end of the day this is the place I wanted to be.”
“When you look at where we’ve been the last four years and what the mission is going forward,” Raptors president Masai Ujiri said. “We all agreed that this will be a good partnership (to build toward winning) a championship by bringing back an all-star player who is a big part of our success here. It’s a happy day for the Toronto Raptors.”
After Lowry had stints in Memphis and Houston, the Raptors were, eventually, the first NBA team to put their faith behind the point guard and trust him to lead their team, showing a belief and loyalty that he has worked hard to return throughout his life.
“I’m back here for a reason,” Lowry acknowledged on Friday. “They believe in me and I believe in them. It’s a great partnership we have and I want to make sure we continue to get better. I’m all in. There’s no question that we’re going to do what we need to do.” He went on to say that he plans to have input in all facets of the club, from coaching to personnel, to ownership decisions, and will take pride in helping the Raptors’ young players develop as well. “I’m going to take this city to new heights, this country to new heights.”
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
“I feel like we have unfinished business,” Ibaka said when asked why he decided to return to Toronto. He also discussed the opportunity to go into training camp with Lowry after the two played just four games together prior to the playoffs last season: “It’s always important for a team and players to have a training camp together. We can do a lot better than we did last year.”
“We have a team that can do big things,” Ibaka added, before stating that he thinks the Raptors shouldn’t be preoccupied with the changes surrounding them in the East. “We have to focus on us.”
The fact that the landscape of the Eastern Conference is shifting is not something that’s lost on Ujiri, either. “There are a couple of teams restarting, three playoff teams from last year (Chicago, Indiana, Atlanta) … We’re happy to see some all-stars move to the West.”
The Raptors president also addressed the departures of Patrick Patterson and P.J. Tucker in free agency to the Thunder and Rockets, respectively.
“It was difficult to see Patterson go, difficult to see PJ go,” he said. “You find a bond; we’re not one of those teams that keeps changing and changing. When you do that, you get attached to these guys (but) it’s a business and we have to do what we need to do to win.”
Ujiri was asked about the rumours of him being recruited to the New York Knicks: “I’m hoping to be a Raptor for life, whether you like it or not,” he said.
