The Miami Heat have secured the services of Kyle Lowry on a five-year, $90 million contract.
The Miami Heat land Kyle Lowry, retain Duncan Robinson on 5-year, $90 million deal is the latest in a string of moves by the Miami Heat. The team has signed Kyle Lowry to a five-year, $90 million deal and retained Duncan Robinson on a two-way contract.
6:59 p.m. Eastern Time
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ESPN’s Tim Bontemps
Kyle Lowry is joining the Miami Heat in a sign-and-trade deal after spending the previous nine years with the Toronto Raptors and becoming perhaps the best player in team history, including guiding them to their only title in 2019.
Lowry revealed his decision to join with Miami on social media, and sources informed ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the three-year agreement with Miami would be worth about $90 million.
According to reports, the Raptors will get Precious Achiuwa and Goran Dragic in the sign-and-trade.
The Heat have also agreed to re-sign restricted free agent Duncan Robinson to a 5-year, $90 million contract, according to his agent, Jason Glushon. The contract includes an early termination option in the fourth year, making it the biggest ever for an undrafted player.
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Lowry will join the Heat with close buddy Jimmy Butler and rising All-Star center Bam Adebayo as Miami attempts to retool after being swept by the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs this spring.
Robinson’s retention was also crucial for the Heat, as the sharpshooter was a vital component of Miami’s offensive scheme and the definition of a specialist last season, with 613 of his total 717 shot attempts coming from long range.
He established the Heat franchise record for most 3-pointers in a season and the NBA record for the quickest player to achieve 500 career 3-pointers in his third season.
Robinson, who went undrafted out of Michigan in 2018, inked a summer league contract with the Heat before agreeing to a two-way contract for the following season. Last season, the 27-year-old scored 13.1 points a game on 40.8 percent shooting from three on 8.5 attempts.
A source told ESPN that Miami also signed former Bucks forward P.J. Tucker as a free agency away from their Eastern Conference opponent. Tucker has averaged 7.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in his career. The agreement was originally reported by The Athletic.
Max Strus, a free agency guard, is also returning to the Heat. His representative, Mark Bartelstein, informed ESPN that he is signing a two-year, $3.5 million contract.
The Heat’s signing of Lowry signals the end of an era for both he and the Raptors, as the 6-foot guard from North Philadelphia totally transformed his career after coming in Toronto nine years ago. Lowry was a solid guard who was reaching his third team in six NBA seasons when the Raptors acquired him from the Houston Rockets in exchange for guard Gary Forbes and a future first-round pick — a pick that then-Rockets general manager Daryl Morey included in the seminal trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for James Harden a few months later.
He’s now a six-time All-Star, has made an All-NBA team, has established himself as one of the league’s greatest point guards, and is widely regarded as the best player in club history.
Lowry’s exit from Toronto seemed to be imminent many months ago, when his name was widely floated before to the NBA Trade Deadline in March. However, despite receiving offers from the Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Miami Heat that club president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri considered insufficient, Toronto opted to keep their franchise icon.
Just days after the NBA draft, the free-agent signing process for 2021 has started.
• The most up-to-date free agency and trade news and buzz The offseason will be defined by ten questions. The most important choices for all 30 teams • FA rankings by team for 2021 and 2022 Every club has draft assets that may be traded.
“We’ll discuss it then,” Ujiri stated during a press conference the night before the trade deadline. “I believe we will discuss them when the time comes at the conclusion of the season.” But I believe we all understand Kyle and this ball club, and what he’s done not just for the city, but also for the team, the nation, and the league.
“To be honest, our group can go in a lot of different ways. It’s something I keep repeating. We are at ease in whatever path we choose. We may have lost an opportunity now, but we believe we have gained a chance in other areas in the future. This squad, particularly after everything we’ve been through this year, has the ability to pivot in a variety of ways. This is where we are right now.”
After all, the Raptors now have something in exchange for their longstanding star’s departure, thanks to Monday’s transaction.
Nonetheless, it marks the end of an era in Toronto. After establishing a close connection with backcourt partner DeMar DeRozan and transforming the Raptors into a reliable playoff club for the first time, everything changed in July 2018 when DeRozan was traded to San Antonio in exchange for Kawhi Leonard. The Raptors would go on to win the title the following season, with Lowry playing a key part in bringing Toronto its first championship since the Blue Jays won back-to-back World Series in 1992-93.
Lowry departs the Raptors as the franchise’s all-time leader in 3-pointers, assists, steals, and triple-doubles, but behind DeRozan in many other categories, including games, minutes played, and points scored. In almost every other metric, Lowry is easily in the top five.
With Lowry’s departure, the Raptors’ heyday has come to an end. From 2014 through 2020, Toronto reached the playoffs seven times in a row, two more than the franchise’s previous high of five visits in its first 18 years. Point guard Fred VanVleet, who re-signed with the Raptors this summer for the biggest deal ever given to an undrafted free agent, and forwards Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby, as well as forward Scottie Barnes, the No. 4 overall selection in last week’s NBA Draft, will now take over.
Royce Young of ESPN contributed to this story.
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