Lowry recalls run-in with Raptors assistant over eating peanuts

It's all good now between Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors.

But there were some bumps along the way - especially after an embarrassing end to the 2014-15 season when the Raptors got swept in the playoffs by the Washington Wizards.

Lowry, the team's star player, performed extremely poorly and his conditioning worsened as the season went along. That led to a contentious exit meeting, and worries over his weight extended into the following training camp.

As Lowry recalled to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, an unnamed Raptors assistant coach spotted him sneaking peanuts during practice, and confronted him about it.

“There’s a problem with me eating peanuts?” Lowry said. “There shouldn’t be a problem with me eating peanuts when I’m doing every drill. And my team is winning every drill. Why is there an issue with me eating peanuts?

“I get a call from my agent, Andy (Miller), and the team told him: ‘Kyle is disrespecting the game by eating peanuts.’ How am I disrespecting anything when I’m eating my peanuts, on the side, when I have a chance?

“Somehow, one year ago we still had issues. From getting swept in the playoffs until that preseason, there was still tension, and a little bit of, “Oh (expletive), what’s going to happen?”

To his credit, Lowry took the criticism to heart and bounced back with the best season of his career in 2015-16. Dramatically re-shaping his body led to Lowry earning All-NBA Third-Team honors, along with an All-Star nomination, and career highs in points (21.2), steals (2.1), and 3-pointers per game (2.8).

Lowry's resurgence also helped the Raptors reach the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.