Sixers

Obligatory Kyle Lowry Update Post: Aren’t the Sixers Pretty Damn Good Already?

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Mar 24th, 2021 · 11:13 AM EDT

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Need to get a Kyle Lowry post on the site, or else The Maestro will be displeased. If you didn’t know, Kyle is a Villanova guy and loves his Villanova players.

Obviously the NBA trade deadline is tomorrow. The Lowry rumor was hot for a bit, then ice cold, and now it’s warming up again.

The latest is a continuation of what we had Monday, with the Heat seeming to be the frontrunners, if you believe the reports. The Sixers are also “interested,” but here’s how Woj put it in a recent ESPN article:

Lowry, who turns 35 on Thursday, grew up in Philadelphia and played his college ball at Villanova. A trade to the Sixers would represent a return home, but Lowry has had an open mind about a number of potential destinations, sources said. Lowry doesn’t have veto power over a trade, but Raptors management is taking into consideration Lowry’s wishes, given his monumental role in the franchise’s rise to perennial playoff contention, including a 2019 NBA championship, and his place in Canadian sporting lore.

Lowry, who makes $30.5 million this season, will be seeking a new contract in the offseason.

Philadelphia has discussed separate deals with Toronto on both Lowry and Powell, sources said. The Sixers have also inquired about other available guards on the marketplace, including Oklahoma City’s George Hill and New Orleans’ Lonzo Ball, sources said.

I wrote a bit about George Hill Tuesday, but Norman Powell is a name that didn’t pop up very much in recent weeks. He’s having a career year, averaging 19.5 points per game and shooting better than 40% from three. He’s 27 years old with a cap hit close to $11 million and a player option for next season. That’s the type of move where you’d have to agree to an extension for it to make sense, or else you’d be giving up too much for a rental.

Speaking of extensions, Lowry allegedly wants one, according to the Inquirer’s Keith Pompey:

The Sixers and Miami Heat are having talks with the Toronto Raptors to acquire the six-time All-Star point guard in a trade. However, Lowry, 34, wants some indication that a potential destination is willing to give him a two-year extension at a minimum $25 million a year, according to sources. He’s making $30 million in the final year of his Raptors deal.

The Raptors would like Sixers rookie guard Tyrese Maxey or second-year shooting guard Matisse Thybulle included in a package for Lowry. However, a league source said the Sixers aren’t willing to part ways with Thybulle, one of the league’s best young defenders.

If this is the case, then I don’t blame the Sixers. I wouldn’t part with Thybulle either, not when you’re going to need perimeter defending to match up with the Nets, should they meet Brooklyn in the playoffs. Moving Maxey would be much more palatable, and you’d have to part with Danny Green to match salaries, which shouldn’t be an automatic thing for Sixers fans. Green is a veteran winner and has played some nice games this season.

But extending Lowry, who turns 35 this week, for another two years at that price just doesn’t make a lot of sense for the Sixers, who already maxed out Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Tobias Harris. It’s borderline not even feasible anyway.

Here at Crossing Broad, we do have sources of our own. We don’t report on a lot of NBA stuff because it’s honestly very hard to sift through third party and agent-driven bullshit, but I’d be surprised if the Sixers do something big at the deadline. I think Lowry is much less likely than going for a George Hill type of player, and then trying to add a stretch big to help the second unit. Maybe a buyout player. The sense I’m getting from surface-level sniffing is that the Sixers like their team and like their starting lineup. If that’s the case, then they just need to add some depth pieces for the playoff run, and then should be more than fine once Embiid gets healthy.

Standing by.