Getty Gabe Vincent #2 of the Miami Heat reacts in the first half against the Boston Celtics in Game Three of the 2022 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Finals
The Miami Heat were said to be interested in acquiring another point guard this offseason. After Lowry missed games with both injury and personal reasons, Gabe Vincent was asked to play in a bigger role for the Heat last season. Vincent proved to be an excellent point guard in his newfound role in Miami, where he averaged nearly 9 points and over 3 assists per game.
Vincent’s play was solid, but the Heat still found themselves attached to rumors of them pursuing another ballhandler this offseason. That had them linked with players like Dennis Schroder, John Wall before he signed in Los Angeles, and even as a team that enquired about DeJounte Murray before he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks.
Eastern Conference Executive on Heat’s Backcourt Situation
While the Heat were linked in rumors for a new ballhandler, one NBA executive shared with Heavy that after a strong offseason from Vincent, he wouldn’t expect anything to change in the Heat’s backcourt.
“Go back and watch them in the playoffs last year. 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,” the executive told Heavy.
While Lowry is expected to be fully healthy going into this season, and they believe in Vincent, he did note that the Heat could have depth issues if Lowry or Vincent gets hurt, and it would leave Tyler Herro or Victor Oladipo to play extended minutes at the backup point guard position.
“The problem is, if Lowry has trouble staying healthy again, you’re going to have Herro playing backup point guard and Oladipo playing backup point guard. That’s not the ideal setup. But they’re more concerned about the tax right now so I don’t see them making any real changes,” the executive continued.
Kyle Lowry’s Injury Status
Lowry faced a lot of criticism last season, with people calling him out of shape, even Heat team president Pat Riley who shared what Lowry will need to address going into the season.
“The bottom line with me and for me as far as hoping you can get the most out of a player,” Riley said. “… You have to be in world-class shape, you just have to be. He’s definitely gonna have to address that and it will be addressed.”
Lowry noted he did have concerns that derailed his season in an interview this summer and that it is a personal issue that is still affecting him.
“I’m still dealing with it,” Lowry said of the family issue, “It’s a situation when it’s better, I’ll talk about it more. But it’s definitely something that kind of derailed my whole season and kept me derailed for a long time.”
Despite the ongoing concerns for Lowry, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra predicted that the point guard will not only be back and ready for training camp but that he will be in the best shape of his life.
“I think Kyle will come back in the next training camp in the best shape of his career,” Spoelstra said.