Toronto Raptors fans have been worried about the future of point-guard Kyle Lowry ever since he became an integral piece of the club that started winning this year. A high-profile all-star snub, Lowry is scheduled to be a free-agent at the end of the season, and fans have been wondering if they will see Lowry back with the Raptors next season. Adding to the intrigue are the rumours that he was nearly traded to New York Knicks in December.

According to MLSE CEO Tim Leiweke, the fans shouldn’t worry. Appearing on CBC’s George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight Leiweke was asked whether the team can and will re-sign point guard Kyle Lowry (video link; scroll ahead to 5:50 mark). Leiweke indicated that they will.

“There’s a really special bond between [general manager] Masai [Ujiri] and Kyle,” Leiweke said. “This town should be in love with this guy. What a great story. He’s vented that anger and energy that he had last year, and it was sometimes aimed at the refs, sometimes aimed at other people. He’s figured out how to vent that and put that into the team, and this team truly loves each other.”

The 28-year-old Lowry is averaging 17.4 points and 7.6 assists per game with a 19.9 PER for a Toronto team tied for third place in the NBA’s Eastern Conference right now. The Raptors have Lowry’s Bird rights and have only committed about $39 million in salary for next season, so they should be able to bring him back, assuming that Lowry wants to stay in Toronto.

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