Kyle Lowry was back, and back home.
The next step for the Miami Heat point guard and Philadelphia native is getting back to being yourself.
Sidelined for two weeks with a hamstring strain, Lowry was clearly short of himself in a 99-79 road loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night that cut the Heat’s lead to 2-1 in this best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal. done.
“I had a good day at work, like half a day, and I just found a rhythm,” Lowry said, as the Heat turned their attention to Game 4 at the Wells Fargo Center on Sunday. “I didn’t expect it to be amazing [Friday], I didn’t expect zero points, but I was trying to get a feel for the game, just to be out there, especially in this hostile situation. ,
Injured during the second half of the Heat’s April 22 road defeat to the Atlanta Hawks, the Heat’s only defeat in the first round, Lowry missed four games before returning. He played 25:21 on Friday night and closed 0 for 4 off the ground, including a 0 for 2 at 3-pointers, without a free-throw effort, contributed four rebounds and three assists.
Sunday’s goal is for more, including his minutes.
“Hopefully I can get a little bit more, and hopefully my hamstring response is well enough to move on and move on,” he said. “I think everyone knows that hamstrings are hard injuries and I’ve never had a soft-tissue injury. So I’m going to figure it out. One thing about it is that I’ll figure it out.”
“I’ll get my treatment done and I’ll get my body fixed and I’ll be ready to go on Sunday.”
A month before his injury, Lowry turned 36, which was a concern for some when he signed his three-year, $85 million free-agent contract. But barring a hamstring, he missed only one game due to injury in his heat debut season, when an ankle pain ruled him out of the season’s road opener in October.
So, yeah, just as the 76ers got a significant boost from Joel Embiid’s series debut on Friday, expect a delayed boost with Lori now injected into the series mix.
“I love his warrior spirit and everything,” coach Eric Spoelstra said. “A lot of things happen in the playoffs that aren’t exactly how you want it to be played out. You won’t have the right setup or the right ramp up and all that.
“But we need him. And that’s why he’s been able to bring the game into his realm. He’s had such a long, decorated playoff career, we need it, especially on the road.” [After] That first game, I think he will be in a better rhythm in the next one.
They briefly lost their way when the Heat lost Lowry to the Hawks. After Friday’s mistake, now it is expected that it can spread its feet again.
“It means a lot, just to see him back there,” said power forward PJ Tucker. “I missed him out there. Kyle special. Kyle is a different kind of point guard. He’s going to move it, he’s going to attack, he’s going to try to get people into their place.” Is.
“And just having his voice is everything. Next, I look for him to be more aggressive.”
That, Lowry said, is the plan.
“I’m fine,” he said. “Whenever I’m on the court, I don’t make excuses. I’m all good. I’m healthy. I’m as healthy as I can be now. We’ll get some treatment and be ready to go on Sunday.”
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