BOSTON — Miami Heat guard Kyle Lowry will “warm up with intent” to play in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics Saturday night, according to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.
Lowry has not played since injuring his left hamstring again in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Philadelphia 76ers. Lowry first suffered the injury in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Atlanta Hawks. He missed the final two games of that series and the first two of the Sixers series before attempting to return.
Lowry’s potential return would provide a major emotional boost to a Heat team going into Game 3 tied 1 with the Celtics – but dominated by the Celtics in a 127-102 loss in Game 2 in Miami. Heat players and coaches have often commented on how helpful Lowry’s presence on and off the court has been – and his potential return has also attracted the attention of a strong Celtics team.
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“Kyle brings shooting, he brings intensity when it comes to the defensive end,” Celtics forward Grant Williams said after Saturday’s shooting. “He uses his body in a great position; They don’t necessarily want to field him, he’s doing a great job taking charges, kind of lashing out and getting the umpires involved.
“He’s a vet to take out of the game because he also provides a shot on goal for them and they play a lot more in transition when he’s playing. He kicks the ball forward, he’s ready to pull up in the 3 transitions, fly away from the actions. So that gives them a different dynamic. It’s going to be fun to have him back because you want every team to be perfectly healthy so you can compete at the highest level and hopefully PJ’s knee is okay too so we can all go out there and play our best basketball game. “
Heat guard PJ Tucker is also expected to play in Game 3 after exiting Game 2 with a bruised knee.
ESPN’s Tim Bontemps contributed to this report