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The 2022-23 season has been a let down so far for the eighth place Miami Heat. With the amount of injuries that Miami has dealt with throughout the first half of the campaign, it wouldn’t hurt for them to add some depth before the February 9 Trade Deadline.
In a recent article for Heavy.com, Jack Simone proposed a three-team trade that would not only help the Heat become a deeper team, but also ditch Kyle Lowry’s hefty contract. Simone plotted out the potential move involving the Heat along with the Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors.
Warriors receive: Max Strus, Dwight Powell
Mavericks receive: Lowry, James Wiseman, 2026 1st-Round Pick (Lottery Protected via GSW)
Heat receive: Tim Hardaway Jr., Donte DiVincenzo, JaMychal Green, 2028 2nd-Round Pick (via GSW)
Simone went into detail to highlight the benefits of the proposal for Miami.
“Lowry hasn’t lived up to par for them (Miami) this year, so a trade like this would see them shift their focus,” He explained. “Gabe Vincent and Tyler Herro could take over the primary ball-handling duties, while Hardaway would step in as a much-needed extra scorer and shot-creator. DiVincenzo would play a similar role, adding his solid defense into the mix, too. And they would also land Green, who could play some minutes at the four or five, depending on where they need him. Overall, it would be a nice way to improve their depth and overall team construction.”
To Simone’s point, Lowry hasn’t been worth the nearly $30 million that the Heat are paying him. The 36-year-old is averaging just 13.1 points per game this season, while shooting just 39.8% from the field and 33.6% from deep. Lowry hasn’t averaged so few points since his first year with the Toronto Raptors in the 2012-13 season, when he scored just 11.6 a game. Miami has been without him six times this season and have only lost once. That being said, Lowry has proven to be an asset that the Heat can afford to lose in a trade.
The potential addition of Hardaway Jr. would be great for Miami’s depth. He and Victor Oladipo would make a lethal bench scoring duo. Hardaway Jr. has averaged 14 points per game and shot 36% from deep for the Mavericks this season. The Heat have even reportedly had talks with Dallas on adding the scoring wing, according to Bleacher Report’s Adam Borai.
Divincenzo would maintain the Heat’s guard depth as the move on from Lowry. He’d likely slide in to the bench spot as Gabe Vincent potentially moves to the starting lineup. For the Warriors this season the 25-year-old has posted 7.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists. Like Hardaway Jr. he’s been able to knock down the 3-ball at a respectable clip, making 37.7% of his attempts.
Green would be a piece that would potentially allow the Heat to move on from rotation big-man Dewayne Dedmon. He’s been serviceable for Golden State in 28 appearances this season, averaging 5.8 points and 4 rebounds off the bench.
Heat Interested in Swapping Kyle Lowry with D’Angelo Russell: Report
Lowry’s name has been in trade rumors for pretty much the entire season. It’s hard for the Miami Heat to justify paying him so much as his production continues to decline. Back on December 15, a report surfaced that Miami had shown interest in Minnesota Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell.
Darren Wolfson of SKOR North was first to report the Heat’s interest in the former No. 2 overall pick.
“I’m told that the Miami Heat are showing some trade interest, just a little bit, in D’Angelo Russell of the Wolves,” Wolfson said on KSTP, a Minnesota television station.
The move would be yet another way for Miami to get off of paying the final year of Lowry’s contract next season. Russell is only under contract until the end of the 2022-23 campaign, allowing the Heat to dodge the luxury tax going forward.
Heat Fend Off Thunder Despite Injury Woes
The Miami Heat’s tough luck is yet another reason why they’d benefit from ditching Lowry in favor of more depth.
On January 10, the Heat were able to scrape out a 112-111 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Miami did so with Jimmy Butler being the only one of their regular starters to suit up for the game. Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Kyle Lowry, and Caleb Martin were all sideline due to various injuries.
The Heat have been one of the least fortunate teams in the NBA this season when it comes to players having to miss time. According to spotrac.com, Miami has suffered from the second-most missed games due to injury in the league this year at 161.
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