The Miami Heat are back in the thick of contention, a place they found themselves last season before heading to the bubble to make a run to the NBA Finals.
They may need to approach it the same way they did last year. The thing that sticks out most about last season or the turning point, some might say, was the trade with Memphis.
Sending out what was essentially Justise Winslow, the Miami Heat netted the huge pieces that were Jae Crowder, Andre Iguodala, and Solomon Hill. Though Hill didn’t play much, his willingness to do anything and everything necessary of the team when he did was a huge plus and just as valuable as the sizable contributions made by the other two.
With that though and looking back at the Miami Heat’s current situation, is it time to do that again? Some seem to think so and quite a few names have come up, but none would fit more than Kyle Lowry.
The Miami Heat and Lowry would be the perfect marriage as he is already a player of that certain type of ilk that the Miami Heat covet. A lineup featuring Lowry and Jimmy Butler would surely give opposing offenses hell and when you throw Bam Adebayo into that mix, it becomes even more daunting for a defense to think about.
Would the Raptors ever give Lowry up though?
Miami Heat Trade Rumors: Is Kyle Lowry in play?
While the Toronto Raptors are neither the Toronto team of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan or that same championship team from a few seasons back, they aren’t a bad team at this current juncture. So then, why would they be looking to get off of a veteran lead guard who is still capable of exploding on any given night, while averaging high double-digits for you?
Well, the long answer would lead you to believe that it has everything to do with looking further in the future than just a potential title run this season. With Pascal Siakam paid and flourishing, the same for Fred VanVleet and other guys like OG Anunoby, the Raptors are looking to begin the transition into a new era.
Not that Kyle Lowry can’t play with those guys, it’s just that at a certain point, it’s time to devout that money, time, and roster opportunity to someone else. While that happens if a player is no longer able to produce at a high level, in general, it also happens when a team is ready to move on from a guy that’s been a primetime producer for them for so long, such as this situation with the Raptors and Kyle Lowry.
The short answer is this though. They won’t or aren’t looking to move him.
That’s, at least, according to the reports of Michael Grange.
Miami Heat Trade Rumors: Would Toronto even trade Kyle Lowry?
According to the reports of Michael Grange, the Raptors won’t trade Kyle Lowry at any point this season. In his words, ” Lowry is not going to be dealt before the March 25 trade deadline”.
That seems pretty definitive. Though the Raptors have made no indications about their plans in either direction, one can only assume that they’ll stand pat as long as they are doing well and they are doing pretty good.
On top of that though, even if they were to become willing to trade him, the Miami Heat would have competition for him. Here is a bit more on that, along with what Grange had to say of Kyle Lowry and the Miami Heat, in general.
"As for Miami, there has been mutual interest between the Heat and Lowry going back years. Some players and some organizations just seem to fit. And it’s easy to imagine that Lowry — having spent the winter wheeling around Tampa with the top down on his newly purchased Ferrari 812 GTS, golfing whenever time allows and enjoying the 8-10 per cent bump in take-home pay not having state income tax provides — might enjoy spending the last two or three years of his career in Miami. But the Heat are light on draft capital to bolster an in-season trade and will have cap space this summer in free agency to sign a Lowry-level star this summer, so why weaken their hand now as they try to repeat their run to the NBA Finals when they have good reason to think of themselves as the most appealing non-Raptors alternative out there?"
He makes a very good point. Why would they give the assets it would surely take to acquire Lowry mid-season, when they are probably the leaders in the clubhouse to land him if he actually does end up leaving Toronto?
They probably wouldn’t. Pat Riley is too smart to simply give away resources.
So, while Lowry would be an awesome addition at the moment for this Heat team, it’s very unlikely at this point according to Grange. It would seem that way as well, again, if you are keeping up with the standings.
The Toronto Raptors are right in the thick of things as well. Trading Kyle Lowry is a negative move for the Raptors right now, no matter which way you look at it.
That’s the benefit of it all though for Miami. They’d be weakening a surefire contender in their conference, while strengthening themselves, but again, it probably won’t happen this season.