Kyle Lowry organized team trip to the Bahamas before playoffs

Two logical candidates were Jimmy Butler and Udonis Haslem. When approached on the subject, each made it clear they did not organize the trip. They also declined to name the organizer. A few days later, a league source with a connection to the Heat caught wind of the inquiries and reached out to Yahoo Sports: “It was Kyle Lowry.”
Source: Chris Haynes @ Yahoo! Sports

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Chris Haynes @ChrisBHaynes
Inside an approved pre-postseason excursion to the Bahamas that provides details into how tough a decision the Miami Heat have with Kyle Lowry in these playoffs. sports.yahoo.com/might-be-time-… – 11:10 AM

Shandel Richardson @ShandelRich
Max Strus and Kyle Lowry continue to struggle #miamiheat si.com/nba/heat/miami… – 11:08 AM

Joe Vardon @joevardon
It’s hard to say, especially about two players who, in their own way, have earned respect. But the Miami Heat should bench Kyle Lowry, Max Strus for Game 6. It’s the injuries, ⁦@The Athletic⁩ theathletic.com/3334444/2022/0… – 9:20 AM

Justin Kubatko @jkubatko
The Heat’s starting backcourt of Max Strus (0-9) and Kyle Lowry (0-6) shot a combined 0-15 from the field last night.
Since the NBA began tracking starters in 1970-71, it’s just the fourth time a starting backcourt has been held without a field goal in a playoff game. pic.twitter.com/OP4xi8csHY – 9:11 AM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
Five Degress of Heat from Wednesday night’s 93-80 loss to Celtics: sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-h…
1. Another bad spell spells doom.
2. Kyle Lowry (hamstring) simply too limited.
3. Jimmy Butler (knee) also not himself.
4. Can anyone make a 3? (Answer: No.)
5. Heat go small, shrink. – 12:07 AM

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz
NEW: Takeaways, notes, thoughts, reaction from the Heat’s Game 5 loss to the Boston Celtics, including remarks from Lowry (who described his play as “terrible”) and Butler: miamiherald.com/sports/spt-col… – 11:55 PM

Brady Hawk @BradyHawk305
“I gotta play better. I played terrible.”
– Kyle Lowry – 11:48 PM

Anthony Chiang @Anthony_Chiang
Tonight was the first game in Kyle Lowry’s NBA career that he did not record a point or an assist in while playing more than 15 minutes. – 11:43 PM

Brian Mahoney @briancmahoney
Credit to Spoelstra for not wanting to make excuses, but he doesn’t need to. We can all see it. Butler and Lowry had wide-open jumpers and couldn’t reach the rim. The legs look gone. – 11:33 PM

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz
Strus and Lowry a combined 1 for 28 past 2 games. Their 0 for 15 tonight is worst 0 for something by starting backcourt in a playoff game since NBA started recording things of this nature in 1970, per ESPN. – 11:16 PM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
Winderman’s view: Time to sit Kyle Lowry again? Plus other Heat-Celtics thoughts. sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-h… – 11:09 PM

Rob Perez @WorldWideWob
Radio Roulette is LIVE @UnderdogFantasy
– Game 5
– Heat Culture kidnapped
– Jimmy, Jaylen, Jayson
– Zombie Kyle Lowry
– Embiid tweet
– And where did it lead you? Back to me.
– Finished Last Kingdom
Talking about it all now, join us!⬇️
youtube.com/watch?v=1dMDHY… – 11:09 PM

Vivek Jacob @vivekmjacob
What a brutal stretch for Lowry. I really hate that he rushed back for those two Philly games, hoping against the odds that this just isn’t what his body is now. pic.twitter.com/Op1RzdbHm9 – 11:09 PM

Andrew Sharp @andrewsharp
Lowry scamming the elderly Pat Riley for 28 million/year the same year Jerry West gets blindsided by HBO. Our legends deserve better! – 11:06 PM

Gary Washburn @GwashburnGlobe
#Celtics beat #Heat 93-80 in Game 5, take 3-2 series lead. Brown 25 (0 turnovers in second half), Tatum 22, Horford 16 ; Adebayo 18, Vincent 15, Butler 13, Robinson 11, Lowry 0.
#Heat were 7 for-45 on 3pt. – 11:06 PM

Kevin O’Connor @KevinOConnorNBA
This series is over. No way the Heat win two in a row. Not enough firepower. Too many injured guys. Lowry looks hurt or washed. Celtics defense is insane, Tatum and Brown have figured it out on offense. It’s done. – 11:00 PM

Chris Palmer @ChrisPalmerNBA
Max Strus last 2 games: 0-16 FG, 0-11 3FG
Strus & Lowry last 2 games: 1-28 FG, 1-19 3FG – 10:59 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Lowry has no legs at all. No lift on his jumper. Can’t run at all. He should not be out there. – 10:51 PM

Haralabos Voulgaris @haralabob
Lowry shouldn’t be playing. Oladipo likely shouldn’t be playing. Guess that leaves Gabe Vincent? – 10:50 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Kyle Lowry limping to the scorer’s table to check in. I get that it’s now or never time, but he’s clearly not right. – 10:43 PM

Rob Perez @WorldWideWob
look out, here comes Kyle Lowry. – 10:42 PM

Jeff Goodman @GoodmanHoops
Jimmy Butler not close to healthy, no Herro, Lowry still banged up. Not sure the Heat would have won this series at full-strength, but this is crazy. – 10:41 PM

Michael Pina @MichaelVPina
no jimmy + no lowry + no herro = no chance against boston’s defense – 10:40 PM

Tommy Beer @TommyBeer
Dating back to the start of Game 4, Kyle Lowry and Max Strus are a combined 1-of-27 from the floor… which isn’t great – 10:40 PM

Eric Koreen @ekoreen
Heat struggle scoring at the best of times. Without Herro, with an injured Lowry and against the best defence in the league? Forget it. – 10:39 PM

Ryan McDonough @McDNBA
The Heat are running out of viable perimeter players
Herro is out, Strus is in the locker room and Lowry can’t move right now – 10:31 PM

Anthony Chiang @Anthony_Chiang
Gabe Vincent doing some good things off the bench. Kyle Lowry is scoreless tonight and has missed each of his five shots as he plays through his hamstring injury. – 10:21 PM

Ky Carlin @Ky_Carlin
With the way Gabe Vincent is playing, I’m not sure if the Heat can go back to Kyle Lowry. He’s clearly limited by that hamstring injury. – 10:21 PM

Tim Bontemps @TimBontemps
Gabe Vincent probably has to go as much of the rest of the way as possible for Miami. Kyle Lowry is giving it all he’s got, but Vincent has been good today and has some pop coming off the bench at both ends. – 10:20 PM

Surya Fernandez @SuryaHeatNBA
Foul on Lowry for existing in front of Tatum on that drive. – 10:17 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Gabe Vincent in for Kyle Lowry.
That’s probably a win for Miami with how limited Lowry looks right now. – 10:17 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Four fouls on Kyle Lowry. – 10:16 PM

Tim Reynolds @ByTimReynolds
The Heat starting backcourt of Kyle Lowry and Max Strus is 1 for 27 — yes, 1 for 27 — since the start of Game 4.
Boston up one, midway through the third of Game 5. – 10:12 PM

Quinton Mayo @RealQuintonMayo
I’m so sick of the Kyle Lowry flopping. All the flopping from both teams in this series is absolutely ridiculous. – 10:09 PM

Fred Katz @FredKatz
I would love to know, if he was watching, how Marcus Smart reacted to Kyle Lowry taking his second charge of the 2020 All-Star Game. – 10:05 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
I can’t wait to see what Marcus
Smart has planned to top that incredible acting by Kyle Lowry.
The flop-off between those two has been epic for years. – 10:02 PM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
Lowry still without a point or assist. – 10:02 PM

Tony Jones @Tjonesonthenba
Have some shame, Kyle Lowry – 10:01 PM

Sopan Deb @SopanDeb
Oh my god amazing flop there by Lowry – 10:01 PM

Tom Westerholm @Tom_NBA
Saw some chatter about Lowry clamping Tatum’s arm when he got hurt in the first quarter, but if you watch, Lowry grabbed Tatum’s left arm. His right shoulder is the balky one. pic.twitter.com/mRj7MEAfLe – 10:00 PM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
Based on how Lowry and Butler look, team with fewest injuries win. – 9:59 PM

Bobby Marks @BobbyMarks42
Kyle Lowry now 5-19 from the field and 3-12 from 3 in this series. – 9:46 PM

Jeff Zillgitt @JeffZillgitt
Heat’s starting backcourt – Kyle Lowry and Max Strus – went scoreless in the first half on a combined 0-foTweetr-7 shooting. – 9:43 PM

Tim Bontemps @TimBontemps
Marcus Smart just picked up his second foul – both of which came on contact with Kyle Lowry above the 3-point line. – 8:53 PM

John Karalis @John_Karalis
Guess Lowry is starting after all – 8:48 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Celtics starters for Game 5:
Robert Williams
Al Horford
Jayson Tatum
Jaylen Brown
Marcus Smart
Heat starters:
Bam Adebayo
P.J. Tucker
Jimmy Butler
Max Strus
Kyle Lowry
(Previous lineup showed Gabe Vincent starting, but Kyle Lowry is available and starting) – 8:14 PM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
It’s again Adebayo, Butler, Tucker, Strus and Lowry as Heat starters. But with no Herro, Oladipo could be sixth man. – 8:06 PM

Ira Winderman @IraHeatBeat
Heat injury update:
Tyler Herro (groin): Out.
P.J. Tucker (knee): Available.
Kyle Lowry (hamstring): Available.
Max Strus (hamstring): Available.
Gabe Vincent (hamstring): Available. – 6:43 PM

More on this storyline

Yahoo Sports approached Spoelstra with this new information and he confirmed it. “Kyle met with me and told me what he wanted to do with the team. He had all the logistics figured out and I gave him my blessings,” Spoelstra told Yahoo Sports. “There are only about a handful of players like Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Udonis Haslem who’ve played for this franchise that I know could have pulled off something like this. It shows you how special Kyle is and how much we really respect him as a person and a player.” -via Yahoo! Sports / May 26, 2022

At the end of the regular season for the Miami Heat, before knowing their first-round playoff opponent, a majority of the players took a surprise trip to the Bahamas for a few days. This was not a trip orchestrated by the Heat. Most teams would rather their players stay locked in the gym and in film sessions as they prepare to embark on the most important juncture of the season. Players raved about the trip, saying it was a welcomed excursion that provided a nice mental break and a bonding period beyond the ordinary. -via Yahoo! Sports / May 26, 2022

Following a moment of silence for those who lost their lives at Robb Elementary School, the Heat’s public address announcer, Michael Baiamonte, read this statement: “The Heat urges you to contact your state senators by calling 202-224-3121 to leave a message demanding their support for common-sense gun laws. You can also make change at the ballot box. Visit Heat.com/vote to register, and let your voice be heard this fall.” The statement wasn’t limited to the sellout crowd at FTX Arena. With the game being televised on ESPN, which carried the pregame ceremony live, it was heard throughout the world. -via The Athletic / May 26, 2022