Toronto to honor Kyle Lowry with jersey retirement ceremony

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Toronto Raptors franchise will give Kyle Lowry a fitting NBA send-off by hanging his legendary No. 7 jersey in the rafters.

After signing a ceremonial one-day contract to officially finish his career with the Raptors, Lowry is stepping away from the NBA after an illustrious 20-year career highlighted by an NBA championship in 2019.

“I’ve been looking forward to this moment for years,” Lowry said.

“I always said that Toronto is home, and that I’d retire a Raptor, and to see my No. 7 go up in that building is going to mean everything to me.”

Selected 24th overall in the first round of the 2006 NBA Draft, Lowry spent his first six seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets before heading to Toronto, where he reached his peak.

Tagged as a “steal” when the Raptors needed only a protected future first-round draft pick to acquire Lowry, Toronto’s playoff appearances quickly became more consistent upon the arrival of the two-way floor general.

However, the journey with former backcourt mate DeMar DeRozan wasn’t a smooth ride, as their Eastern Conference campaigns were clouded by a series of heartbreaking losses, including the 2018 playoffs, when they were swept by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers despite being the No. 1 seed.

Toronto immediately made several offseason moves heading into the 2018-19 season, firing head coach Dwane Casey while letting go of DeRozan in a trade with the San Antonio Spurs.

Little did the Raptors know that their acquisition of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green would propel them to a breakthrough playoff run the following season, defeating the formidable Golden State Warriors in six games in the NBA Finals.

Lowry was a man on a mission during that Finals series, averaging 16.2 points, 7.2 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.7 steals in six games.

However, their “one-and-done” run with Leonard was cut short, as the superstar small forward moved to the Los Angeles Clippers ahead of the 2019-20 NBA season.

Lowry remained one of the steadiest guards in the league and even helped the Miami Heat reach the NBA Finals in 2023, together with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Duncan Robinson.

In his final years with the Philadelphia 76ers, Lowry became more of a vocal locker room leader as his playing time diminished from 29 minutes per game to 14 minutes per game.

Over 1,187 regular-season NBA games, Lowry averaged 13.8 points, 6.0 assists, and 4.2 rebounds. He reached the postseason 12 times and leaves the league as the Raptors’ all-time leader in assists, steals, 3-pointers made, and triple-doubles.