Last summer, the Miami Heat decided to make a big-time trade by acquiring star guard Kyle Lowry from the Toronto Raptors.
For many analysts, the move seemed like one that made the Heat real contenders in the Eastern Conference. While the Heat did end up as strong contenders and were just one win away from advancing to the 2022 NBA Finals, Lowry did not play a large role in that success.
In fact, Lowry only played in 10 of the Heat’s playoff games last season due to injury. In those games, he averaged a forgettable 7.8 points, 4.7 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game.
That enough is a cause for concern, but one NBA executive believes the issue is a bit deeper than that. In fact, the executive believes that the Heat were more effective last season when undrafted youngster Gabe Vincent was on the floor.
“Go back and watch them in the playoffs last year,” the executive told Heavy.com. “I think the dirty little secret there is that they were better with Gabe Vincent on the floor than with Kyle Lowry. Now, to be fair to Lowry, he was not healthy, that was obvious. But on the other side, they were really good with Vincent in there. He did not play lights-out, but he could get the ball to Jimmy [Butler] and get out of the way, then play some defense on the other side. So they’re fine with him as the backup.”
Vincent was thrust into the starting role for the Heat in eight of the total 18 playoff games he appeared in last season for the Heat. In those 18 games, he averaged 8.0 points, 3.2 assists and 1.9 rebounds per game.
There is no doubt that Lowry was hampered by injury, and at 36 years old, he is definitely on the back end of his career.
As for Vincent, he’s just 26 and is currently entering his prime as a professional even though he’s been in the league for just three years.
Still, even the executive admits that Vincent’s place on the team for the foreseeable future will be as a backup point guard. The Heat simply can’t put Lowry out of the starting lineup after trading for him and signing him to a three-year deal worth $85 million.
Surely, the hope internally is that Lowry will be healthier and in better shape in the 2022-23 campaign. If he can be, the Heat should once again be one of the best teams in the East.