MIAMI — Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry will not play in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers as he continues to deal with a hamstring injury, the team announced Tuesday.
This will mark the fourth straight playoff game Lowry has missed after initially injuring the hamstring during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks on April 22.
Despite Lowry’s continued absence, the Heat remain confident that they can continue to win as the veteran guard makes his way through the rehab process. The Heat come into Wednesday’s game with a 1-0 series lead over the Sixers.
“We’ve had enough opportunities this season with either Kyle or Jimmy [Butler] out where Gabe [Vincent] has been able to step into the starting lineup and everybody feels confident we can function on both sides of the floor. It’s a credit to him earning that trust of everybody, players and staff alike and that’s just what we’ll just continue to do. We’ll play who is available and then make adjustments after that.”
Spoelstra said that Butler, who missed Game 5 of the Hawks series because of knee soreness, came through Game 1 fine after playing 30 minutes. Butler had an excused absence for Tuesday’s practice and will play in Game 2.
“There was a point, and I don’t know what that number was going to be, but he and I were having a discussion — if [our lead in the second half of Game 1] got to anywhere near single digits, he was going back in.”
The Heat also listed several players as questionable for Wednesday’s game — Vincent (right knee irritation), Tyler Herro (left ankle sprain), Caleb Martin (left ankle sprain), P.J. Tucker (right calf strain) and Max Strus (right hamstring strain).
Source: www.espn.com