Kyle Lowry traded to Toronto for Pick

Barely three weeks after surgery to repair a sports hernia and torn abductor muscles, Rockets guard Kyle Lowry returned to the Toyota Center weight rooms and went through shooting drills on the practice court.

But as he leaves town Saturday, he does not know if he’ll return to those familiar facilities or if he wants to be back.

Lowry does not believe he and Goran Dragic, his successor as the starting point guard this season, will both return to the roster next season. Lowry was even less confident he and Rockets coach Kevin McHale can successfully coexist.

“I don’t think so,” Lowry, 26, said. “I honestly think it would be tough. Things have to be addressed. The situation would have to be addressed.

“If things aren’t addressed coaching-wise, I guess I have to be moved.”

But McHale did not believe the issues were too great for him and Lowry to work well together.

“That’s very surprising,” McHale said. “I didn’t think we had too much of a problem coexisting this year. Everybody has a little beef every once in a while. I didn’t feel like (there were problems). He apparently did.

“There were times that we didn’t agree on things. There were times that I got on him. I don’t think it was unduly harsh on anybody.”

Lowry and McHale seemed most at odds during a late-season game in Denver when McHale grabbed Lowry and pulled him back toward a huddle during a timeout with Lowry reacting angrily on the court. Both downplayed the incident in the next few days, but Lowry confirmed he needed to be restrained.

“My teammates pulled me away,” Lowry said. “They did a good job.”

There is, however, a clear reason to believe that Lowry can be an outstanding point guard with Kevin McHale as his coach next season:

Last season.

McHale was the coach last season when Lowry began the season playing on an All Star level. He was the coach when Lowry was the Rockets clear most valuable player. Though he and McHale butted heads through at the season – a term McHale said he did not think applied but that Lowry thought put it mildly – Lowry excelled up until the injury grew too severe.

That sent him to a New York hospital for an examination that eventually led to the discovery of a dangerous bacterial infection. He spent a week in the hospital and a month off the floor and was never the same when he tried to return for the final weeks of the season.

The issues became public in Denver when McHale grabbed Lowry and pulled him back toward a time out huddle, with Lowry reacting so angrily he was restrained by teammates. As the Rockets faded from sixth to ninth in the west, Lowry felt that he was unduly blamed for the collapse since he was struggling just to play at all.

“I was begged to come back,” Lowry said. “I was unhealthy. Just talk to me. If I’m that bad, just tell me “Kyle, sit down.’ I would have been fine with that. Just don’t play me two minutes, sit me the whole game and yell at everything I do. Whatever. Having the season start the way it started and things that happened.”

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey knew of Lowry’s feelings, but when he discussed them on Friday, he immediately pointed to the competitiveness that McHale and Lowry share. In many ways, they are alike as athletes, playing with a fire and intelligence about the game that elevates them as players.

Lowry might not think so, but with time, they could grow to appreciate that about one another, as McHale eventually grew to appreciate Bill Fitch.

Lowry did, in a way, leave the door open. He said repeatedly that things would have to be addressed, indicating that if they are, maybe they could be worked out.

The Rockets could trade Lowry. He is proven starting point guard with a manageable contract. He would not be the Kobe Bryant successor that the Lakers thought Chris Paul would eventually become, but Lowry would be an outstanding fit for the Lakers. The Rockets still covet Pau Gasol, but are unlikely to offer quite as much as before last season.

The Rockets, however, will not move Lowry just because he has a beef with the coach or to clear the way for Dragic to sign as a free agent. They believe Dragic and Lowry can get starter’s minutes on the same team (neither should be playing the 38 minutes they have played in the past.) They believe they play well together. That was one of the Rockets’ better lineups last season, just as Aaron Brooks and Lowry played well together.

Mostly, they won’t make any kind of move like that unless it gets them that foundation star they have sought since moving on from the Tracy McGrady/Yao Ming years.

Lowry discussed all this while knowing that nothing could be as crucial as a return to good health. He struggled to move laterally last season while playing hurt. With the surgery, rehabilitation and a summer working on his conditioning, he could be the player he was in 2009-10 and at the start of last season.

He might even have to find if McHale and he can co-exist again.

While Lowry had a successful season, he believes he could’ve done even more if he wasn’t limited by Rockets head coach Kevin McHale. In fact, Lowry has said that if McHale returns as head coach, he will likely demand a trade.

“If things aren’t addressed coaching-wise, I guess I have to be moved,” Lowry told the Houston Chronicle.

When asked if he and McHale could successful coexist, Lowry had doubts.

“I don’t think so,” Lowry said. “I honestly think it would be tough. Things have to be addressed. The situation would have to be addressed.

Lowry isn’t the only player in Houston who feels that way, he’s just the only one who’s willing to go on the record. Throughout the season, a number of players and agents questioned and criticized McHale’s rotations, adjustments and decisions, but they wanted to remain anonymous. Lowry decided to make his feelings public, and the coach was caught off guard.

“That’s very surprising,” McHale responded. “I didn’t think we had too much of a problem coexisting this year. Everybody has a little beef every once in a while. I didn’t feel like (there were problems). He apparently did.”

“There were times that we didn’t agree on things,” McHale added. “There were times that I got on him. I don’t think it was unduly harsh on anybody.”

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey didn’t seemed concerned about Lowry’s comments.

“I think Kyle and Coach McHale are both winners and both competitive guys,” Morey said. “I don’t anticipate any issues going forward.”

It’s unlikely that the Rockets would trade Lowry given how much they value him. Many teams called and made offers for the veteran point guard this season, but Houston refused to make him available. These latest comments don’t mean that Lowry’s days as a Rocket are numbered, they indicate that McHale’s on the hot seat.

davriver290 wrote:Him and Sessions as our Pg's would give us the best PG rotation. lol. But if we trade for him, who else would we get? I don't want Scola, that's just another shorter soft Pau.

Frank Dux wrote:^I think the word we're all looking for here is "flopper"

bruddahmanmatt wrote:

davriver290 wrote:Him and Sessions as our Pg's would give us the best PG rotation. lol. But if we trade for him, who else would we get? I don't want Scola, that's just another shorter soft Pau.

Umm...Scola is NOT soft.

KB24 wrote:the gap between Lowry and Sessions isn't big enough to sacrifice Pau for that. Not even close.

Rooscooter wrote:^^You know..... after looking at what Dragic did when he started I might take him over Lowry.... In 28 games as a starter he scored over 20 thirteen times and dished out over 10 assists 8 times. He also had 3 or more steals in 7 of those games.

Lowry scored over 20 eleven times all year.... 10 assists or more just 5 times.... in 38 games as a starter....

Stats don't tell everything... that's for sure but I didn't know Dragic was playing at that level on a consistent basis....

He doesn't have the attitude Lowry does and is a much better shooter/scorer and is just as good or better at distributing the ball....

He'd be cheaper too in the long run.

It's been real