Hours before the trade deadline is set to expire on March 25, the Miami Heat‘s offer to obtain Toronto Raptors star Kyle Lowry was revealed.
At 10:15 a.m. ET, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst revealed that Miami offered up star forward Duncan Robinson in a trade for Lowry. While there are other Heat players that will also be sent to Toronto in this deal, it’s notable that the centerpiece of the offer is Robinson, and not NBA sophomore, Tyler Herro.
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Money wise, Miami Heat can send Andre Iguodala, Kelly Olynyk, and Moe Harkless, in order to receive the six-time All-Star.
Practically speaking, however, the Raptors, who are looking to rebuild with young talent, would likely want rookie Precious Achuiwa instead of Iguodala or Harkless, which can also work salary cap-wise.
Five Reasons Sports Network Adam Borai tweeted on Thursday at 10:40 a.m. ET that the Heat’s offer is pretty much final, which means Miami is not going to wiggle on Herro.
Borai said, “Sources tell me that the Heat & Raptors are currently engaged in talks, Heat have made as close to a final offer as there is. They’re trying to expand this deal to find a 1st that they can send to Toronto. GM’s waiting for Lowry resolution before frenzy starts.”
“Another hurdle,” Borai tweeted, “Creating a deal that allows them to keep Andre Iguodala. They don’t want to lose both Kelly & Andre in a potential deal sources tell me.”
Robinson Opened Up About Possibily Being Traded Before the Deadline
While Robinson is a firm part of the Heat’s starting lineup alongside All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, he’s also one of Miami’s most attractive trade pieces. Robinson, 26, opened up about being mentioned in rumored trade deals on his The Long Shot podcast. On the heels of the multiple reports discussing the Heat giving up Robinson to obtain Houston Rockets’ P.J. Tucker, and now with Lowry, the Michigan alum says he can’t escape hearing about these rumors.
“One thing I don’t have a shortage of, moments of being humbled in my basketball career, thinking that I got it figured out and quickly realizing that I don’t,” Robinson said on The Long Shot. “At this point, if I weren’t able to apply that to my situation now then I would just be doing myself a serious disservice. Of course, anyone who says that they’re able to block it out entirely is just lying.”
“Of course, it’s everywhere, so even if you turn off your phone or you delete social media, which I do, it’s unrealistic to say that it’s gone,” Robinson continued. “Because you know it’s happening and you know that it exists. I think the important thing is to just keep the main thing the main thing.”
The Heat are Pursuing Lowry ‘Harder Than Anyone’
After obtaining Oklahoma City Thunder’s Trevor Ariza, the Heat have been linked to trade deals for Houston Rockets’ Victor Oladipo and made an offer for Brooklyn Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie, but according to The Ringer‘report, Lowry is who they really want.
On Sunday, Kevin O’Conner reported that “the Heat are pursuing a deal for Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry harder than anyone.” While the Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers have also shown interest, Lowry prefers taking his talents to South Beach partly because he’s best friends with Heat All-Star Jimmy Butler.
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Miami Heat Offers Star Forward in Trade for Kyle Lowry: Report