Toronto Raptors guard Norman Powell celebrates after hitting a three-pointer during a game against the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento, Calif., on March 8, 2020.Rich Pedroncelli/The Associated Press
The Toronto Raptors did not trade star point guard Kyle Lowry prior to Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.
Lowry, a free agent after this season, was considered a candidate to be moved with the Raptors sitting 11th in the Eastern Conference standings.
Lowry is a six-time NBA all-star and is considered by many to be the best Raptor in franchise history.
Earlier, the Raptors traded guard Norman Powell to the Portland Trail Blazers for guards Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood.
A source confirmed the Powell deal to The Canadian Press on Thursday, less than two hours before the NBA’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
The source was granted anonymity because the deal has not been officially announced.
Powell is eligible to become a free agent after this season if he declines his player option.
The guard has increased his scoring average every season since Toronto acquired his draft rights in 2015 after Milwaukee selected Powell in the second round. He is averaging 19.6 points per game this season and is shooting 49.8 per cent from the field.
Trent is a restricted free agent after this season and Hood’s deal for next season is not guaranteed. The 22-year-old Trent is third on the Blazers in scoring, averaging 15 points. The 28-year-old Hood is averaging 4.7
Trent’s father, Gary Trent Sr., also was traded to Toronto from Portland in the Damon Stoudamire deal in 1998.
The Raptors (18-26) snapped a nine-game losing streak with a win over Denver on Wednesday, but still are not in a playoff spot in a season in which they have had to play home games in Tampa, Fla., because of COVID-19 border restrictions. The top six teams make the playoffs and teams ranked seventh through 10th advance to the play-in tournament.
Toronto was hit hard by COVID-19 over the past month with five players missing nearly three weeks, coinciding with an nine-game losing streak.
Just six players now remain from Toronto’s 2019 championship roster — Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Chris Boucher and Patrick McCaw.
Lowry, a Philadelphia-born point guard, was acquired by the Raptors in a trade with Houston in 2012. He is the Raptors’ franchise leader in assists and is one of only three players in franchise history to score 10,000 points with the club.
Lowry was plus-42 on Wednesday in a 135-111 win over the Denver Nuggets, a career high and second highest in Raptors history behind Mark Jackson, who had a plus-46 performance in 2000.