After Heat point guard Kyle Lowry left Friday’s Game 3 against the Hawks with a hamstring injury, Miami conceded a double-digit lead and fell to Atlanta for the first time in the first-round Eastern Conference playoff series, 111–110.
Naturally, the longtime NBA veteran wasn’t pleased with his injury or with his team’s result.
“I’m pissed the f— off,” Lowry said, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, as he exited State Farm Arena on Friday.
Lowry, who was reportedly walking with a limp postgame, told McMenamin he planned to undergo round-the-clock treatment ahead of Game 4 on Sunday. When asked if the injury could cause him to miss any time as the series progresses, the veteran point guard dismissed the idea.
“No, I’m Wolverine,” Lowry said to ESPN, referencing the X-Men comic book character with superhuman healing powers.
Although Lowry exuded confidence, his status for Game 4 is still up in the air, according to McMenamin.
“All I know right now is it’s a hamstring,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said postgame when asked about Lowry. “But I do not know the severity of it and we’ll find out more tomorrow.”
Lowry left Friday’s game with 1:59 remaining in the third quarter with the Heat ahead by 13 points. At the time, he had just six points on 2-of-7 shooting and five assists, but had registered a team-best plus-minus of plus-18 in 23 minutes of action. He did not return and Miami coughed up its late lead on the road after getting outscored by Atlanta 34–25 in the fourth quarter.
In his first year with the Heat, Lowry, 36, has been a steadying veteran presence. He averaged 13.4 points and 7.4 assists per game during the regular season, helping to earn Miami the No. 1 seed in a deep Eastern Conference.
With the Heat now leading the No. 8 Hawks 2–1 in the series, Lowry will do his best to get on the court as soon as possible. He’ll get the chance to do so as early as Sunday, when the two teams take the court for Game 4 in Atlanta.
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