Kyle Lowry assured that Heat won’t trade him for Kyrie Irving

There’s no indication that the Heat wants to move on from 36-year-old Kyle Lowry – who is very close with Jimmy Butler – but Pat Riley has said that Lowry needs to get in better shape. The Heat has assured Lowry that it has no intention of trading him for Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving, according to a source briefed on the situation. We’re told that Lowry wasn’t upset when Riley said publicly that his conditioning must improve.
Source: Miami Herald

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
For the sickos who like to watch, Wednesday’s @LockedOnLakers pod, YouTube version. We talk with @Jovan Buha about Russ opting in, the possibility of still trading him, the Lakers-Kyrie talks, Malik Monk’s future and more. @LockedOnNBAPods @LockedOnNetwork
youtu.be/17BqAWo8vlw?t=… – 6:26 PM

Brady Hawk @BradyHawk305
Looking at this news w/ Brunson and possibly S+T with Lowry, I have 1 comment:
Jimmy was best friends with Dragic, and he got traded
Jimmy became very close with PJ, and he might walk
Jimmy is closer with Kyle than anybody, what makes you think Miami won’t be willing to move? – 6:22 PM

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz
Mavs free agent PG Jalen Brunson will meet with Knicks (considered the heavy front-runner for him), Dallas and Heat this week, per @Chris Haynes .. Would require sign and trade with Miami, which already has Kyle Lowry at PG…. NBA (legal) floodgates open at 6 tomorrow. – 6:12 PM

Kristian Winfield @Krisplashed
Nets sold Patty Mills as a culture-driver last season. Tough to see him go. He posted a career-high 11.4 PPG last season but was worn down by the minutes played in the absence of Kyrie Irving and James Harden. Great get by @Brian Lewis – 6:01 PM

Austin Krell @NBAKrell
James Harden asked out of BKN, underperformed, and is open to taking less money to help his team.
He was criticized for quitting on BKN, while Kyrie Irving selfishly missed more than half of the season due to personal decisions and then tried to force the Nets into a max deal. – 5:13 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Kyrie Irving remains with Nets, but latest comments reminder drama far from over nba.nbcsports.com/2022/06/29/kyr… – 4:46 PM

Keith Smith @KeithSmithNBA
Either the 76ers are pulling off some serious cap wizardry or Kyrie Irving distracted us from the fact that James Harden is actually the one taking a $30M pay cut. – 3:38 PM

Mike Mazzeo @MazzNYC
DraftKings’ Johnny Avello and Caesars’ Craig Mucklow weigh in on pricing the Nets in the NBA futures market given the continued uncertainty over Kyrie Irving’s future playny.com/brooklyn-nets-… – 3:14 PM

Jeff Goodman @GoodmanHoops
Kyrie Irving Returns to Nets + Is Jaylen Brown Disrespected? | Bob Ryan & Jeff Goodman Podcast | Powered by @HireOnLinkedIn twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1… – 3:00 PM

Eric Pincus @EricPincus
Latest @BleacherReport Would Any of These 4 Teams Help Lakers, Nets Trade Russell Westbrook, Kyrie Irving? – If, after the dust settles from their mutual opt-ins, the teams look to revisit a swap, is there a third team willing to take on RW? How? bleacherreport.com/articles/10040… – 2:50 PM

StatMuse @statmuse
Collin Sexton in his last season:
24.3 PPG
3.1 RPG
4.4 APG
LeBron and Kyrie are the only other Cavs with those stats or better in a season. pic.twitter.com/9JJ0GybbkS – 1:52 PM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
More on #Knicks later. For now, can Kyrie Irving of #Nets win MVP? Ex-teammate thinks it is possible. Odds are as high as 150-1. sidelines.io/nba/can-kyrie-… – 12:20 PM

Zach Lowe @ZachLowe_NBA
ICYMI yesterday: Lowe Post podcast previewing all things free agency/trade w/ @Bobby Marks: Kyrie’s opt-in, then our 5 Most Intriguing free agency teams: Mavs, Nets, Bulls, Hawks, Spurs, Wolves, Sixers, much more:
Apple: apple.co/3NwVTaq
Spotify: spoti.fi/3nopYyg – 11:30 AM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Wednesday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast w/@Jovan Buha! We discuss Russ opting in, how close the Lakers got to a Kyrie deal, Malik Monk’s Laker future, free agent targets and more! #FirstListen @LockedOnNetwork @LockedOnNBAPods
Subscribe. Rate. Enjoy. Thx!
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rus… – 10:48 AM

Alex Schiffer @Alex__Schiffer
The June mailbag is up. On the KD/Kyrie saga, ideal offseason and I got some scouts to weigh in on Alondes Williams: theathletic.com/3388143/2022/0… – 9:30 AM

Micah Adams @MicahAdams13
Shout out to a pair of courageous pioneers – Russell Westbrook and Kyrie Irving – for opting in to a combined $83 million.
#DareToBeDifferent – 9:25 AM

Alex Kennedy @AlexKennedyNBA
🚨 NEW PODCAST EPISODE 🚨
2022 NBA Free Agency Preview: @Michael Scotto and I discuss the latest rumors, the Knicks’ moves, Zach LaVine, Deandre Ayton’s market, Kyrie Irving’s opt-in, Dejounte Murray’s future, trade candidates, sleeper free agents and more: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the… – 8:05 AM

Chris Sheridan @sheridanhoops
No matter whether you like or dislike Kyrie Irving of #Nets, you have to consider whether he is wager worthy for MVP. Ex-teammate Channing Frye strongly believes in him. Odds are as high as 150-1. MORE: sidelines.io/nba/kyrie-for-… – 6:28 AM

Bill Simmons @BillSimmons
New BS Podcast!
—The Knicks go all-in for Brunson, Kyrie/Nets madness + NBA media turning into pro wrestling w/ @VanLathan @BigWos
—A UFC 276 mega-preview w/ tortured Knicks fan @arielhelwani
—A Lakers PR advice session plus making “Loot” w/ @alanyang
open.spotify.com/episode/5D4tTd… – 12:30 AM

Danny Leroux @DannyLeroux
I wrote a Q+A for @The Athletic on Kyrie Irving’s decision to opt in. Whether he can still agree to an extension, whether the Nets can still trade him, Brooklyn’s books now and moving forward, and much more theathletic.com/3387211/2022/0… – 8:19 PM

Brian Lewis @NYPost_Lewis
Kyrie Irving-#Nets soap opera far from over despite opt-in #nba nypost.com/2022/06/28/kyr… via @nypostsports – 7:24 PM

Justin Kubatko @jkubatko
📅 On this day in 2006, the NBA Draft was held in New York, N.Y. The top four picks:
1. Andrea Bargnani, TOR
2. LaMarcus Aldridge, CHI
3. Adam Morrison, CHA
4. Tyrus Thomas, POR
Other notables:
6. Brandon Roy, MIN
21. Rajon Rondo, BOS
24. Kyle Lowry, MEM
47. Paul Millsap, UTA pic.twitter.com/yAIycs2Xz9 – 1:31 PM

StatMuse @statmuse
Most PPG by an old guy (35+ years old) this season:
30.3 — LeBron James
25
20
15
14.7 — Chris Paul
13.4 — Kyle Lowry
13.3 — Carmelo Anthony
That’s the most ever by a player over 35. pic.twitter.com/WR01H3BfYN – 11:01 AM

Shandel Richardson @ShandelRich
The latest Kyle Lowry commercial #miamiheat si.com/nba/heat/miami… – 3:52 PM

Austin Krell @NBAKrell
Feels like there have been hardly any reports lining up players to specific teams in advance of free agency, a la Lonzo to the Bulls and Lowry to the Heat, the way there have been in previous offseasons. Maybe it picks up before Thursday, but seems like a lot of darkness. – 9:36 AM

More on this storyline

A street in a North York neighbourhood will soon be named after a beloved former Toronto Raptor. Kyle Lowry Road will be one of the eight new streets at Don Mills Crossing, a 60-acre site near Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue East, which is the future location of a community hub with new residential, office and retail buildings. -via CP24 / June 10, 2022

Brady Hawk: Pat Riley on Kyle Lowry’s conditioning: “The bottom line with me and for me as far as hoping you can get the most out of a player…is that you have to be in world class shape, you just have to be.” “He’s definitely gonna have to address that and it will be addressed.” -via Twitter @BradyHawk305 / June 6, 2022

For the Heat to make such an acquisition of Zach LaVine, Gozlan says Kyle Lowry would need to be involved: A sign-and-trade sending LaVine to Miami would very likely require Kyle Lowry to be included, because it will be nearly impossible to stay under the hard cap with him along with Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and LaVine all on max contracts. A package of two-to-three first round picks, along with Lowry and Tyler Herro to match salaries would probably be the framework of such a deal. Although they would be hard capped in this scenario, they’d still have enough flexibility to keep Duncan Robinson and their minimum studs, use the taxpayer mid-level exception, give PJ Tucker a $1.1 million raise, and only sign an additional 3-4 more minimum players afterward. -via HoopsHype / May 31, 2022

Nets Daily: Kyrie Irving has officially opted in, reports ESPN -via Twitter @NetsDaily / June 29, 2022

According to NBA insider Shams Charania, the three other teams that had significant interest in a potential trade for the enigmatic Nets superstar were the Dallas Mavericks, the Miami Heat, and the Philadelphia 76ers: “There were a couple of other teams that were poking around at him in opt-in-and-trade scenarios: Dallas, Miami, Philadelphia,” Shams said on the Pat McAfee Show, via ClutchPoints on Twitter. “But at the end of the day, he made a move where he said, ‘I’m gonna commit. I’m gonna go back to Brooklyn, I’m gonna opt-in.” -via Clutch Points / June 29, 2022

According to NBA insider Brian Windhorst, there are still some “high-ranking people” in the league who believe that Irving landing with Los Angeles could still happen. “I know that there are people in the league, and we’re not talking about ancillary people, we’re talking about high-ranking people, who believe that this is not done,” Windhorst said. “I don’t know. Let me just say this about the Lakers. He obviously was very interested in joining the Lakers. The Lakers were very interested in having him.” -via Lakers Daily / June 29, 2022