Heat players say Rozier will help ‘tremendously,’ note ‘time for energy boost around here’

Hours after learning about the Heat’s acquisition of Charlotte guard Terry Rozier, several players spoke enthusiastically about the boost it will give the team offensively and the lift it will give them spiritually.

From an offensive standpoint, “he’s able to create a lot of space, get his own shot,” said Heat wing Caleb Martin, who played with Rozier for two years in Charlotte. “He’s got so much better at playmaking, getting guys open. Athleticism at the point guard spot more. He’s a dawg, too.”

Rozier, who can play point guard and shooting guard, is averaging a career-high 23.1 points per game. The Heat acquired him on Tuesday morning for Kyle Lowry and a lottery protected 2027 first-round pick. Because the trade has not been announced, Erik Spoelstra could not address the matter during his media session on Tuesday.

Whether Rozier will be available for the Heat’s Wednesday game against Memphis (7:30 p.m., Bally Sports Sun) will depend in part on how soon Lowry reports to Charlotte for his physical.

Heat guard Tyler Herro said a backcourt with himself and Rozier can be “very dynamic. I’m excited to play with him for sure. He’s a great player. I’ve been going against him for four or five years now. He can really score the ball, much like myself. I think we’ll be able to play off each other very well. I’m excited for him to be here.”

How do their games complement each other?

“We both can play on the ball and off the ball,” Herro said. “We both can catch and shoot or dribble and shoot. We also can play-make for our teammates. We’re both younger. I think we’ll play faster. Get the ball up the floor. That’s what I want to be a part of and I think the rest of us do too.”

Kevin Love assessed Rozier’s game this way:

“He’s somebody that can put points up in a hurry, somebody who, obviously, attacks the game. Playing eight and a half years in Cleveland, when he got into the league and we played against him, whether it be in Boston or in Charlotte — any time we played against him — he seemed to, obviously, adapting where he’s from, used to light us up.

“We got a heavy dose of his game. Some games it was high assist output; sometimes it was defensive output. Certainly, can put points up in a hurry, get his teammates involved and he plays the right way. So he does a lot of good things.”

Love said adding another scorer during a season when scoring around the league is up is “huge. It’s huge. But on top of that, I know that Terry’s a competitor. Someone who’s going to go out there every single game and fight. It is increasingly important and paramount to have a weapon and a scoring threat out there on the floor at really every position.

“But somebody who can put points up in a hurry. With teams and offenses scoring so many points and the offensive ratings continuing to go up, usage continuing to go up — I mean, we had two guys score over 60, a guy score 70, last night. It just goes to show you how important that is in this league now.”

Bam Adebayo, while declining to speak much on Rozier until the trade is officially announced, said acquiring another scorer will add “more dynamic to our group. Having another scorer and being able to play off each other will really help. You got to make it work at the end of the day.”

Recalling his two years playing with Rozier, Martin said he’s a “great teammate. He’s a good dude, competes. He wants to win. Plays hard on both ends. He will fit right in.”

How much does having another scorer help? “It helps tremendously,” Martin said. “Obviously, he can put the ball in the basket. He’s going to be able to help us tremendously on that side of things.”

EMOTIONAL LIFT

Teammates were effusive in their praise of Lowry as a teammate and person.

But they said simply injecting something new and offensively potent into the mix will give the team an intangible lift.

“I think it’s time for an energy boost around here for sure,” Herro said when asked if there could be an emotional lift with this move. “Terry is a great player. We appreciate Kyle and everything he is done for us and our team. Getting rid of someone who has been part of something like this for two plus years is never easy, but I think it is time, the right time to make a move. And I’m excited about it.”

From Love’s experience, do midseason trades give teams a lift?

“Sometimes, listen, new blood is good,” Love said. “Certainly, for me, it hurts losing Kyle, who has been somebody I’ve competed against and a friend of mine who I’ve become very close to off the floor.

“Obviously, even more here, being so close to him. A lot of battles over the years, so losing him definitely hurts. But yeah, there are cases where it can be a big lift for a team. Sometimes that’s off the floor and emotionally, on the floor, as well. I think that Terry — if it does go through and when it does go through — I think it would certainly give us a lift in that way because sometimes hitting that refresh button and getting some new blood in here can be good.”

Asked if an outside spark could help, Adebayo said: “I feel like it could. Different look. See how it goes.”

Adebayo called Lowry “one of my favorite teammates, if not my favorite teammate. Always talked about ways to get me the ball, get me catches. He’s been positive towards me. I hang out with him in the summer. He’s like a brother to me.”

Love said of Lowry: I think losing a guy that has won a championship, has a championship pedigree as a Hall of Fame point guard, a guy that has the ear of pretty much everybody on the team. That’s obviously something that is tough to lose. But yeah, I think it’s an opportunity or other guys to step up, including myself, in a role that I enjoy doing myself. So it’s something that I look forward to doing.”