Lowry is a die hard North Philly guy so that is the basis of the speculation. Signing Lowry makes little sense by itself so I think it would have to be in conjunction with trading the #3 for a star like Butler. They have plenty of cap space and assets to do it. The Collangelo's may not have the patience to let the process play out.
Lowry, Butler, Covington, Simmons, Embiid would be a strong, balanced starting lineup and they'd have a decent bench too.
Holliday would work as well and would be significantly cheaper. He'll turn 27 not 25 in a week but has an injury history. How does he compare to Lowry on catch and shoot?
This - tp.
If Toronto wavers on re-signing Lowry (like Atl did with Horford), I could see Lowry going back home to Philly and signing a max contract - something he is unlikely to get anywhere else.
That #3 pick would have quite a bit of value, too. If Philly felt content moving forward with Embiid, Lowry, Saric, and Simmons, I could see them flipping that pick for a quality veteran. Covington, Holmes, and Okafor aren't the worst reserves reserves in the world either. They also still have Stauskas and Bayless under contract with young players like Anderson and Luwawu who could possibly make an impact.