Miami Heat: Kyle Lowry’s Scoring Important For His Playmaking

Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry (7) attempts a three point shot against the Chicago Bulls(Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)
Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry (7) attempts a three point shot against the Chicago Bulls(Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)

The Miami Heat got another much-needed victory over the Chicago Bulls Saturday night. After beating the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday without their top two stars in the fold, they were successful again on Saturday, though the Bulls were down their best guy this year in DeMar DeRozan.

Even without their top two players though, their third-best player, Kyle Lowry, stepped up in a major way. As his scoring and overall offensive production came into question over the last few weeks, he has picked it up recently, and especially without the other two.

When it comes to the playmaking part of that offense though, it has been present all year long. The kick-ahead passes and pace-making that he’s been doing have been hard to ignore.

However, when you have a Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo in the lineup to finish your passes, that becomes a little easier. Lowry still had 14 dimes and only two turnovers in Saturday’s game though.

The Miami Heat got a really good win on Saturday night over Chicago. It came on the back of Kyle Lowry’s playmaking ability.

How is that possible without his top two finishers beside him? Well, that has everything to do with his own offense.

Being down those guys and one of his other best finishers on the team, Caleb Martin, Lowry proceeded to allow one part of his game to play off the other. He was able to find passing lanes and use those lanes to maximize his teammates— because he was maximizing his own offense.

When you can’t be sure if he’s going to pull up from 40 feet or blow by you to the cup, you have to play him differently. Not only does that give him the mental leverage and edge, as an offensive player and with control of the tempo, but that gives him the ability to be able to go to a myriad of different things.

One of those things is the pass and making plays for his teammates. That was on full display Saturday night.

This is another huge reason why his offense is so important to this Miami Heat team. It isn’t just about his own raw production and how that influences winning and losing, outright.

It’s about how his offensive production will allow him to help others be better. He did that exquisitely Saturday and the results show it.