Kyle Lowry Stays North

Kyle Lowry had a breakout season for the Toronto Raptors leading them to the three seed in the Eastern Conference. Raptors nearly advanced to the second round for the first time in over 10 years, but Brooklyn slipped past in Game 7. Much of the question is would this be a one-year flash in the pan because Lowry was an unrestricted free agent this summer. People thought he could be headed to Miami or other big-name destinations. Lowry decided to stay with the team with a four-year deal for 48 million dollars. Toronto might be taking a little risk, but he is vital to the Raptors' success.

Whenever a team signs a free agent or re-signs a player, there is always some danger unless your name is LeBron James. Lowry had a career year for Toronto after taking a slight stepback in his first year with Toronto. But he became the glue for this team. DeMar DeRozan gets the 'star' tag, but in reality, it is Lowry whose been the key cog to this team despite DeRozan scoring more than him. Lowry and DeRozan together is a lethal duo in the league. Arguably, one of the best 1-2 guard punches in basketball. It is hard to think of player in the league whom could replace his value.

Lowry was a top ten player when it comes to Win Shares last season with 11.7 and Win Shares per 48 minutes. There is no way Toronto could replace Lowry with the same type of player. Eleven wins for the Raptors team makes the difference from being a three seed to being an eight seed. Lowry also was a top ten player in assists, assists per game and three-point percentage. Lowry had a career season, no question about it, but there is nothing to think this is a one-time thing. He never got a chance to be 'the man' on a team, and Lowry finally got his opportunity which he seized to a brand-spanking new contract.

One of the reasons why this string of success will continue for Lowry is his increased free throws per game. It is sort of a basic stat, but for his career, he averaged only about 3.8 free throws attempts per game where as in 2014, Lowry shot one more free throw a game. It doesn't really show up in terms of attacking the basket, but he balanced his two's and three's to have the highest two-point percentage of his career since 2010-2011 season.  Further, it helped his three-point shooting was better than year's past as well. I wouldn't call Lowry a three-point shooter and we never know if this is a one year thing for him. That's something to keep an eye on next season.

The other thing that cannot go under the radar is the Raptors are building something big with their team. DeRozan is only 24, coming off a career year.  Terrence Ross is only 23, and he built on his rookie season where he went into double-digits last season. Amir Johnson averaged 10 points for the second consecutive season and is still young at 27. Most importantly, Jonas Valanciunas is on the verge of being a star. I could see a breakout season for him next season. Lowry is the captain and the technical veteran of this young team. Why wouldn't you want to be the lead guy for this group?

Toronto could be set for the future with Lowry and the young guns in place for a couple years. The Eastern Conference is not hard to be one of the big boys, and most teams are in doubt of what their roster will really look like in October right now. But T. Dot is all set and ready to contend for an Atlantic Division title again.

Charlie.

DeRozan Propels the Raptors in Game 2

Toronto Raptors haven't won a playoff game in six years. They have a sneaky great basketball fanbase there, and their pop culture profile has grown with the addition of Drake as an ambassador plus Toronto Mayor Rob Ford in attendance. Raptors dropped Game 1 with a tough fourth quarter and needed to bounce back to avoid going down 2-0 before heading to Brooklyn. Toronto took control of Game 2 and held on in the fourth quarter notching their first playoff win since George W. Bush's final days in office winning 100-95 with a great effort from DeMar DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas plus should make a big deal about Paul Pierce's postgame comments?

In Game 1, it appeared DeRozan played tight. He did not play like the player we have seen this season only having 14 points. He was not a real factor to the game. Sometimes all it takes is one game to get the nerves out because DeRozan returned to form on Tuesday night and then some. He had 30 points, shooting 45 percent and getting to the free throw line 14 times. DeRozan used his slashing aggressive nature to become a problem for the Nets. Both Kyle Lowry and him appear to be a real problem for an older Brooklyn team as they have to deal with the continuous push of the basketball. Brooklyn looked pretty tired when DeRozan kept attacking him.

One of the great things about the playoffs is we can see some young players shine and then it propelled them to have a great season the following year. Jonas Valanciunas made his presence felt on Tuesday with 15 points and 14 rebounds with an efficient game. He played great inside adding a different element to Toronto's game versus just the reliance on the guards. This is a key thing for Toronto as they need a third scorer from somewhere. It doesn't matter if he comes off the bench or if it is Valanciunas dominating in the paint. Mason Plumlee and others have to be better about protecting the paint or we could see a breakout April for Jonas.

With Valanciunas strong post performance, it paved the way for Toronto's domination on the glass against Brooklyn. They outrebounded the Nets, 53-30, with 19 offensive rebounds, eight more than Brooklyn. While turnovers were an issue for T Dot, they made up for it with a strong rebounding night.  Add what the guards do on the outside and if the big men plus others can clean up the messes, we are looking at a pretty strong team. Maybe a stronger one than we were giving them credit for to begin the playoffs. Brooklyn will need to adjust what they are doing in the paint to avoid the rebound discrepancy in the following games.

Paul Pierce seems to agree with me as he lamented after the game about the offensive rebounds and the fact, Toronto got 50 points in the paint. Pierce threw around the 'soft' label which is a bigger s word than shit in NBA circles. I think it is a clear tactic to fire Pierce up who did not have a great game going 2/11 and also the few young Nets players on the roster. If you add Kevin Garnett's comments about an angry Brooklyn crowd, Pierce obviously wants to add an edge to the team he believes is missing right now. The Truth knows exactly what he's doing.

I thought this series had a chance to be the best in the Eastern Conference. Add in the 'F Brooklyn' stuff plus two close games, we are seeing a budding rivalry build before our eyes. Game three comes to us Friday, and I for one, cannot wait.

Charlie.