Kyle Lowry explains why he is not looking forward to facing Raptors

Kyle Lowry’s decision to join the Miami Heat clearly has nothing to do with his feelings toward the Toronto Raptors.

Lowry’s sign-and-trade to Heat was finalized and made official Friday, and the point guard took part in a conference call afterwards. Lowry spoke some about his relationship with the Raptors. He admitted that he wasn’t looking forward to returning to Toronto as a visiting player because he knew it would make him emotional.

Kyle Lowry: "I'm not looking forward to that first game back (in Toronto) because I know I'm going to get a tribute and I know I'm going to cry."

— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) August 6, 2021

Lowry made clear there were no hard feelings toward the Raptors. He congratulated team president Masai Ujiri on his new contract, and said that it was clear the two sides were simply going in different directions.

Lowry said he and Masai were in open communication throughout last season, just felt the Raptors were going in a younger direction but reiterated that they're in good hands. "For me, it was an opportunity to do something different." (Also congratulated Masai on his new deal)

— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) August 6, 2021

It’s not uncommon for players to endure somewhat acrimonious departures from teams. Lowry’s is clearly nothing like that. It was pretty obvious during the season when trade rumors popped up, too. Lowry is on a contending team, which he wanted, but it’s clear that first game back in Toronto isn’t going to be easy for him.

Photo: Chensiyuan/Wikimedia via CC-by-S.A. 4.0