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Sights and sounds: Heat guard Kyle Lowry honored by Raptors in return to Toronto

Kyle Irving

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Sights and sounds: Heat guard Kyle Lowry honored by Raptors in return to Toronto image

Kyle Lowry's highly anticipated return to Toronto finally arrived and it did not disappoint.

When the Raptors hosted the Heat on Sunday, April 3, it marked Lowry's first game back at Scotiabank Arena since February of 2020. The greatest player in franchise history was honored by nearly 20,000 Raptors fans, being celebrated for everything he did for the team, city and country.

MORE: Lowry pens heartfelt letter to Raptors fans ahead of return to Toronto

It started with his pregame press conference, where Lowry donned his Raptors 2019 NBA championship ring with pride.

When he finally took the floor for pregame warmups, the Scotiabank Arena crowd gave him a sneak preview of what his reception would sound like later in the evening.

Lowry caught up with some old friends real quick...

...then the Raptors wasted no time honoring Lowry, getting right into his tribute video after the Heat's starters were announced. The tribute was done perfectly as Lowry watched on from the bench with his two sons.

Once the game started, Lowry immediately matched up with his understudy, Fred VanVleet.

But VanVleet stole the spotlight from Lowry for a moment when he buried his third 3-pointer of the game to break Lowry's record for most 3s in a single season in franchise history.

VanVleet also had a hilarious moment where he met Lowry at the rim on a drive, finishing through contact before cracking a smile at his former teammate.

But it was Lowry who got the last laugh, leading the Heat to victory behind a packed stat line of 16 points, 10 assists, six rebounds and one steal.

Once the buzzer sounded, it was right back to catching up with his former teammates. There was nothing but love between him and VanVleet...

...and he also chopped it up with Masai Ujiri, too.

It was a special night at Scotiabank Arena – one that Lowry will remember forever.

Kyle Irving

Kyle Irving Photo

You read that wrong – not Kyrie Irving. From Boston, graduated from the University of New Hampshire. Sixth season as a content producer for NBA.com's Global editions. Covering the NBA Draft has become his annual "dream come true" moment on the job. Irving has a soft spot for pass-first point guards, with Rajon Rondo and Steve Nash being two of his favorite players of all time.