Kyle Lowry unlikely to play in Game 1 of ECF

The Miami Heat practiced Sunday, just hours before the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks tipped off for Game 7 of their second-round series. Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals will be Tuesday night at 8:30.

And Kyle Lowry didn’t practice with the team.

Erik Spoelstra said that the six-time All-Star “did some things on the side,” according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Jackson said that Lowry “seems unlikely” to play in Game 1 “barring a dramatic change.”

Lowry injured his hamstring in Game 3 of the Miami Heat’s first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks last month. He sat out the rest of that series and Games 1 and 2 of Miami’s second-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers. And when he returned in Games 3 and 4, he didn’t look right. He missed all eight of his 3-point attempts and appeared to grab his hamstring after making a couple drives to the basket.

The Heat won the next two games starting Gabe Vincent. And having Victor Oladipo in the rotation has helped compensate for Lowry’s absence. But Lowry was the Heat’s marquee addition from last off-season. A healthy Lowry would certainly boost Miami’s chances of getting back to the NBA Finals. Just think of how Khris Middleton would have changed the Celtics/Bucks series.