Everything Kyle Lowry

[blackjitsu]

I hate to be a buzz kill, but being cleared to shoot and being cleared for contact are different things. He could still have another 2 weeks before he's cleared.

[KeonClark]

Playoff JV and possessed Biyombo.

Possessed ibaka, tucker >>> Possessed biyombo, ross

We're much better equipped with a supporting cast this year if our stars play like shit, and with that said, one star will be rested and the other took another leap this season

[LJ2]

Like I said, this years playoff run should be a breeze.

[Deems]

Like I said, this years playoff run should be a breeze.

I'll believe it when I see it. Playoffs are always a different beast.

[Ball]

Possessed ibaka, tucker >>> Possessed biyombo, ross

We're much better equipped with a supporting cast this year if our stars play like shit, and with that said, one star will be rested and the other took another leap this season

I distinctly remember Ross shitting the bed every game he played in the playoffs for the past few years.

[tDotted]

I distinctly remember Ross shitting the bed every game he played in the playoffs for the past few years.

And his 'replacement' Ibaka has been incredibly efficient the past couple of playoff showings

[Mr.Z]

Like I said, this years playoff run should be a breeze.

playoffs are never a breeze. Especially for a fourth seed.

[Maury]

playoffs are never a breeze. Especially for a fourth seed.

We're way better than a 4 seed. First round should be a breeze for this team, if not they aren't as good as we think they are.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[tDotted]

We're way better than a 4 seed. First round should be a breeze for this team, if not they aren't as good as we think they are.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

First round should be done in 5 games tops. 2nd round without HCA however is going to be interesting to watch for this team.

[golden]

Re-integrating Lowry is going to be an issue to watch. Anytime you inject a high usage starter into a lineup, it's not always as simple as it looks on paper. And Kyle is so much more than that... he's the de facto team leader, alpha dog, primary ball handler, offensive quarterback, etc..., etc... Hopefully it won't take too much time to build that chemistry.

[SkywalkerAC]

Re-integrating Lowry is going to be an issue to watch. Anytime you inject a high usage starter into a lineup, it's not always as simple as it looks on paper. And Kyle is so much more than that... he's the de facto team leader, alpha dog, primary ball handler, offensive quarterback, etc..., etc... Hopefully it won't take too much time to build that chemistry.

I'm not concerned in the least, save for his shooting ability. Kyle's as engaged on the sidelines as any injured player I've ever seen, and will know the tendencies of the new additions. The rest is just basketball.

I agree it will be interesting to watch

[ogi]

Re-integrating Lowry is going to be an issue to watch. Anytime you inject a high usage starter into a lineup, it's not always as simple as it looks on paper. And Kyle is so much more than that... he's the de facto team leader, alpha dog, primary ball handler, offensive quarterback, etc..., etc... Hopefully it won't take too much time to build that chemistry.

I honestly think it'll be fine. Looking at his carreer he's managed to fit in well in whatever team or lineup you throw him in. He's smart in that way and knows how and when to make plays for others and when to take over himself.

One recent example is team USA which looked like a much more cohesive team whenever he was on the floor.

[golden]

I honestly think it'll be fine. Looking at his carreer he's managed to fit in well in whatever team or lineup you throw him in. He's smart in that way and knows how and when to make plays for others and when to take over himself.

One recent example is team USA which looked like a much more cohesive team whenever he was on the floor.

Other than the Rudy Gay team, that's probably true. His previous teams and Team USA are a much different story... Lowry wasn't THE guy. This quote was interesting.....

Despite being sidelined with an injury, it seems Kyle Lowry would like to remind everyone just whose team the Toronto Raptors are.

“At the end of the day, when I come back, [the new players] gotta adjust to me,” the all-star point guard told reporters in Miami Monday. “That’s just how we play.”

http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/n...-gotta-adjust/

[KeonClark]

Re-integrating Lowry is going to be an issue to watch. Anytime you inject a high usage starter into a lineup, it's not always as simple as it looks on paper. And Kyle is so much more than that... he's the de facto team leader, alpha dog, primary ball handler, offensive quarterback, etc..., etc... Hopefully it won't take too much time to build that chemistry.

On paper that's exactly what we need though. I could understand if the offense was soaring without him, but it's not. We NEED a high usage scorer, demar is getting triple teamed. Joseph is doing an admirable job, but alpha dog, quarterback, scorer...these are the missing piece currently. Derozan goes back to Co scorer, Ibaka goes back to #3, powell can slow down with either derozan or lowry always with the bench again..the trickle down is enormous.

I could see the argument if we're integrating a rudy gay type. Kyle is just straight positive, we've got a 4 year sample size of that fact

[DanH]

On paper that's exactly what we need though. I could understand if the offense was soaring without him, but it's not. We NEED a high usage scorer, demar is getting triple teamed. Joseph is doing an admirable job, but alpha dog, quarterback, scorer...these are the missing piece currently. Derozan goes back to Co scorer, Ibaka goes back to #3, powell can slow down with either derozan or lowry always with the bench again..the trickle down is enormous.

I could see the argument if we're integrating a rudy gay type. Kyle is just straight positive, we've got a 4 year sample size of that fact

Also, the bench unit has been great defensively (96 DRTG in all non-DD minutes since the break) but has not been able to score to take advantage of that (101 ORTG). Just add Lowry to that mix and the non-DD minutes should suddenly be very productive.

One other benefit of Lowry being back is we'll see more DD with the bench units when Lowry is sitting, and we've had time in this run to figure out some lineups that work really well with DD and mostly bench players. Especially in the playoffs, we'll probably see Ibaka take most of the backup C minutes - meaning the awesome lineup of CoJo-DD-Tucker-Pat-Ibaka could be our end-of-1st/end-of-3rd bench unit giving Lowry a breather. Whereas before we had DeMar playing his bench minutes mostly with Nogueira-anchored bench units that just didn't work great even early in the year before BeBe forgot how to play basketball.

The starters should of course be better - as much as they've struggled a bit defensively (107 DRTG), that's in line with how the team defended as a whole early in the year (middle of the pack), and a big leap of improvement over the disaster that the Siakam starting lineup was (116 DRTG). Meanwhile, the starters' offence is what is bogging them down - a 104 ORTG won't cut it. And the good news? That Siakam starting unit (wherein Siakam was basically useless offensively and in no way comparable to Ibaka) that struggled so much still posted a 107 ORTG.

Small sample size fun to follow:

That Siakam starting lineup also played with Joseph in Lowry's place - 47 minutes on the year, not a great sample but not miniscule or anything, right at the 50 MP decent sample cut-off.

Lowry+starters: 107 ORTG
Joseph+starters: 96 ORTG

Even with no practice together, I expect the starters to immediately be a lot better when Lowry gets back, same goes for the start-of-2nd/start-of-4th bench units, and same goes for the DD-led bench units if Casey uses the bench groups that have been successful and shrinks the big rotation. Crunch time lineups probably can't get much better than they've been, though who knows? In any case, that's like 75% of the minutes played where we should see significant to dramatic improvements, even if Lowry takes a little while to get back to full speed.