Porter: Kyle Lowry May Be Worth It For Philly
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Kyle Lowry is Philadelphia basketball through and through. He's tough, he's determined, and he's an all-star.
But he's 31. And he's injured.
That was my original thought when the Sixers-Lowry links began. But now I'm starting to second-guess myself. It's not as black-and-white as I first thought.
Lowry, the Toronto Raptors' all-star point guard, has a $12 million player option for 2017-18, and could be on the move. The Raptors will face a slew of difficult decisions this offseason -- outlined nicely by Zach Lowe here -- starting with whether or not to re-sign Lowry.
Listen: Andrew Porter' Pulse Of Philly Podcast on Kyle Lowry
Lowe says Lowry "will have suitors -- including his hometown Sixers."
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Lowe, who believes Lowry has two to three more seasons of all-star caliber player left (which I agree with), also wrote "the Raptors would be right to feel queasy offering Lowry the full boat. He is 31, with some nicks and bruises. Point guards don't tend to age well."
The Raptors can offer Lowry a max five-year, $200 million-plus deal. Other teams can only offer four-year deals starting at the same amount, about $35 million per season.
The case against the Sixers signing Lowry is simple: He has a two-three year window of high-level play and he's expensive.
The case for Lowry, is interesting: He's a veteran presence and the perfect complementary point-guard to the unselfish Ben Simmons.
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Lowry is a career 36.4-percent three-point shooter, but shot 38.8-percent in 2015-16 and 41.2-percent this season, albeit in only 60 games.
A lineup of Lowry, Robert Covington, Simmons, Dario Saric, and Joel Embiid -- assuming health -- could be a top-five roster in the eastern conference, not to mention this year's lottery pick(s), which will obviously factor into this equation. Even if Lowry does begin to fade at age 33 or 34, as long as he continues to hit (three-point) shots he should be a viable asset for the Sixers.
If Bryan Colangelo and the Sixers believe that, Lowry may be worth the gamble.
