NBA fans in Toronto went into a frenzy when NBA reporter Michael Grange claimed that the Raptors are planning to sign Kyle Lowry on a 1-day contract so that he can retire while wearing their jersey, instead of having played for the 76ers in his last season.
Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports also confirmed this news while suggesting that the Raptors are planning to retire his jersey in the upcoming season. But Kyle Lowry seems to disagree. The 40-year-old point guard took to social media and expressed his disapproval of these reports with a cryptic message veiled as a denial.
“Wait for the word to come from me, not someone else!! Smh,” wrote Lowry on his Instagram story after these reports came out.
While it looks like Lowry is denying his retirement altogether, this could also just be his displeasure at not being the one who broke the news to his fans and the Raptors’ fans. The 40-year-old is near the end of his career, so the former NBA champion may simply want to dictate his own terms of how he chooses to retire, instead of it being leaked like this.
To be fair, the former Raptors veteran had a bench-warming season for the 76ers, where he averaged 1.2 points, 0.8 assists, and 0.6 rebounds while shooting only 16.0% from the field. So it does not look like any other team might sign him in free agency.
If true, this gives him a chance to reunite with Kawhi Leonard and be teammates with him for one last time before he retires in the city where he spent most of his career and won an NBA championship.
When Lowry was traded to the Heat in 2021, he promised that when his playing days were over, he’d return to Toronto and retire in a Raptors jersey. Now, he seems to be making good on that promise, potentially making this a full-circle moment in an unforgettable chapter of the Raptors’ franchise history.
This report comes in the aftermath of the new-look 76ers roster following the acquisition of Jaylen Brown and multiple other free agents. So it looks like the Philadelphia native would not have gotten a chance to play for his local team next season.
However, just as Lowry said, let’s wait to hear the confirmation of these reports from his own mouth. Until then, it remains to be seen how the six-time All-Star decides to end his career.
