Q: There was no reason for the Heat to give Kyle Lowry a day off on Saturday. They have been inactive for days. – Paolo.
A: Actually, we should have seen it coming, a straight set scheduled just four games after Kyle Lowry returned a month, down to 15 games due to knee pain. An argument could be made that it would have been professional misconduct to play Kyle in those two weekend games in Chicago and Detroit. But the other two straight games on the Heat schedule feature a competitive upgrade, first in Toronto, then New York, then Philadelphia, then Washington. The question is whether the Heat would dare to use Lowry, who will then be 37, in both games of those sets. As it stands, neither the play-ins nor the playoffs feature back-to-back matches, so it could well be that Kyle is going without a straight set when he returns. Still, one would have to wonder if the Heat would have fallen so far behind if Lowry had been available in Chicago.
Q: Ira, last season when Omer Yurtseven was so successful, the Heat used him as a traditional old-school center, playing close to the basket. Now when he comes in he never seems to get down low or get the ball there. With the way it’s being used, it’s set up not to be productive. – Joel.
A: It’s a completely different role. When Omer Yurtseven played last season it was with Bam Adebayo so there was an Omer Yurtseven offense in place. Now it’s just a matter of buying time until Bam gets back in the game. You’re right that the Heat aren’t going to Omer. It is by design. You don’t build an attack around a player who plays three minutes at a time. Just like there was no Dewayne Dedmon infraction or is not a Cody Zeller infraction.
Q: Nice to see Max Strus moving things forward. -John.
A: Chicago is his kind of town. The shame is that no one on the bench participated on Saturday night. Max scored 20, the rest of the Heat bench had eight. The spark of Victor Oladipo is gone.
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