Kyle Lowry Rumors: Why The Lakers, Heat Didn’t Trade For Raptors Guard

The biggest news to come out of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline is arguably the deal that didn’t happen. Widely expected to be moved, Kyle Lowry will stay put with the Toronto Raptors for the remainder of the season.

The Philadelphia 76ers were interested in Lowry, but instead traded for George Hill earlier in the day to fill their need at point guard. Toronto pondered offers from the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat up until the 3 p.m. ET deadline, ultimately deciding to hold onto Lowry.

What kept the Lakers or Heat from acquiring Lowry? Each team was unwilling to give up a young player that would’ve reportedly gotten a deal done.

Los Angeles wouldn’t meet Toronto’s request to include Talen Horton-Tucker in a trade for Lowry, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported. The Heat refused to send Tyler Herro to the Raptors.

Dennis Schroder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope were discussed as pieces in a potential deal between the Lakers and Raptors. Duncan Robinson was part of trade talks between Miami and Toronto

The Lakers have high hopes for Horton-Tucker, who was a second-round pick in the 2019 draft. The 20-year-old only played in six games last season, though he’s shown plenty of promise in 40 games this year. Horton-Tucker is averaging 8.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in just 18.4 minutes per game.

Herro has been a disappointment in his second season, shooting 41.4% from the field and 31.2% from 3-point range. The 21-year-old is still one of the top players from the 2019 draft with averages of 15.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists. Herro was a key contributor as a rookie on last year’s Heat team that reached the NBA Finals.

Miami pivoted at the deadline and traded for Victor Oladipo. The Heat gave up very little for the shooting guard, sending Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk and a future draft swap to the Houston Rockets, according to Charania.

Still the favorites in the Western Conference, the Lakers could end up regretting their decision to stand pat. Horton-Tucker is unproven, while Lowry is just two years removed from being one of the best players on a championship team.

Even though Lowry had his streak of six straight All-Star appearances snapped this season, the 35-year-old is averaging 17.4 points, 5.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game.

The Lakers could be without both LeBron James and Anthony Davis for several more weeks as they recover from injuries.