Kyle Lowry cannot revert to pre-injury riddled Miami Heat form

The Miami Heat haven’t necessarily been good over their last five games or so, falling back below .500 after a great win over Phoenix allowed them to get back there. However, during that stretch and a big part of what has allowed them to just—stay afloat has been the play of veteran point guard, Kyle Lowry.

Lowry has averaged 19 points, over six rebounds, and nearly eight assists in the five games since Jimmy Butler last played for the Miami Heat and though the numbers are one thing in themselves, it’s been his all-around winning play on both sides that’s helped propel them too.

Take into account the fact that it just hasn’t been Butler’s absence that has afflicted the team. Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, Gabe Vincent, Duncan Robinson, Max Strus, and others have all missed time.

The Miami Heat haven’t been great recently, but they haven’t sunk either. Kyle Lowry’s done a great at being a driving force behind the plug in the ship.

But here’s the thing though. At times this season and a lot on last year, Lowry has looked as though he was completely uninterested in even taking the shot, sometimes not even seeming to look at the hoop.

And not only has that been the furthest thing from the truth in this period of play, but he has actually looked a lot like the Kyle Lowry of old. You know, the one from Toronto that would push the pace to get it all going.

He would find a teammate for an open rim run on one play. He would then drive hard to the rim to finish or to kick it out to an open shooter somewhere on the floor.

And last, one of those classic Kyle Lowry plays is the transition three as he stops on a dime on the run or out of nowhere to rise up and nail the shot. And again, he’s been doing a lot of that same stuff for the Miami heat on this latest stretch.

And he’ll have to continue to do so, especially for as long as Jimmy Butler is out of the picture. However and more the point here, even when Butler is able to return to the lineup, this less passive Kyle Lowry is the best one for the team and for Jimmy Butler’s longevity.