Miami Heat veteran point guard Kyle Lowry reportedly is “aware of the possibility” that he could be moved to the bench once he returns from a knee injury.
Lowry has missed the Heat’s last six games, forcing Gabe Vincent into the starting lineup.
“Lowry is at least aware of the possibility that he could move to a bench role, though that decision is still pending and could hinge in part on how the Heat and point guard Gabe Vincent play during this three-game road trip — which continues Saturday in Charlotte and ends Monday in Philadelphia,” the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson wrote.
According to Jackson, Lowry is targeting a return next week, which means that he will at least miss Miami’s next two games against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday and Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.
The former first-round pick is averaging 12.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 39.6 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range in the 2022-23 campaign. He is shooting his worst percentage from beyond the arc since the 2009-10 season when he was with the Houston Rockets.
The struggles that Lowry has had shooting the ball are not something that the Heat were expecting when they agreed to a sign-and-trade deal with the Toronto Raptors ahead of the 2021-22 regular season to bring the one-time champion to Miami.
Vincent has thrived in Lowry’s place this season when called upon. The fourth-year guard is averaging 10.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 39.9 percent from the field and 32.9 percent from beyond the arc.
Those numbers make a nice jump when Vincent starts. He is averaging 15.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game across 11 starts.
Ultimately, Erik Spoelstra and the Heat need to make the move that is best for the team regarding Lowry’s spot in the rotation. The Heat have started Lowry in every game that he’s played so far this season, but a change to the younger Vincent could offer a nice spark to the team’s starting lineup.
Miami currently holds the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, and it will need a nice run in the second half of the season in order to finish in the top half of the East after earning the No. 1 spot last season.
