Who Says No? The Athletic's Trade Proposal To Send Kyle Lowry to Philly

Would the Toronto Raptors be willing to send Kyle Lowry to the Philadelphia 76ers in this trade package involving Matisse Thybulle?

The clock is ticking for the Toronto Raptors.

At 17-23, they're tied for the eighth-worst record in the NBA with a week to go before the NBA trade deadline. They certainly have fair excuses having battled COVID-19 issues for almost three weeks, but their six straight losses can't be erased from the record book. 

While the Raptors have given no indication that they'll be sellers next week, teams have reportedly been inquiring about Kyle Lowry for weeks. His name has repeatedly popped up in trade rumours and an end to his Toronto tenure could be on the horizon.

Thanks to John Hollinger of The Athletic, we have another hypothetical Lowry to the Philadelphia 76ers trade to look at.

John Hollinger's proposed Kyle Lowry trade

For the Raptors, this deal is mostly centred around acquiring the 24-year-old Matisse Thybulle and the Philadelphia 76ers' 2021 first-round pick. Thybulle is one of the best defensive guards in the NBA. He's fifth in the league in steals this season despite averaging only 18.4 minutes per game and he ranks as the second-best defensive shooting guard by Bball-Index's LEBRON stat. In that sense, he certainly fits the Raptors' roster, though his scoring hasn't quite developed to make him much of a difference-maker at the other end of the court. 

For the 76ers, a trade like this is about adding a championship-winning guard to a team with everything else but a championship pedigree. Lowry has already shown an ability to play both on-ball and off-ball and should have no problem playing alongside Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.

As for the Hornets, Charlotte has plenty of cap space to eat Terrance Ferguson's contract and for their trouble, the 76ers would be more than happy to hand over a 2021 second-round pick.

Who Says No: Toronto

Earlier this month we had another hypothetical Lowry to the 76ers trade involving Tyrese Maxey and two first-round picks. At the time, it seemed a little too early to trade Lowry, but in hindsight, that deal looks more enticing than this one. Thybulle is a really interesting young player because of his elite defensive skills, but his lack of offence in addition to what will likely be a very late 2021 first-round pick from Philadelphia isn't going to be enough to sway the Raptors to move Lowry.

If the 76ers wanted to come back with something involving Maxey or another future first-round pick, it would be a little tougher to say no.

Further Reading

Fred VanVleet tested positive for COVID-19 and battled mild symptoms

A Canadian's guide to March Madness

The Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly asked for Norman Powell in Andre Drummond trade talks