The Miami Heat may face some punishment with regard to their acquisition of Kyle Lowry. But they will likely avoid the worst-case scenario.
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported on Sunday that the Heat are being investigated for “gun jumping” with regard to the timing of their sign-and-trade for Lowry. Winderman adds that the acquisition will “almost assuredly” not be voided. Still, the Heat could be fined, lose draft picks, or receive other such sanctions.
For reference, the Milwaukee Bucks lost a 2022 second-round draft pick for violating tampering rules with their attempted sign-and-trade for Bogdan Bogdanovic last offseason. Deals are very rarely voided as punishment for tampering — in the case of the Bucks, Bogdanovic chose to sign with the Atlanta Hawks instead following the saga. But the Heat have themselves experienced such a sanction before. Their free-agent deal with Juwan Howard was voided back in 1996 for a violation of salary cap rules.
In any case, this is ultimately good news for the Heat. The six-time All-Star Lowry was one of their biggest acquisitions in years. Lowry himself is also doing his part not to get his new team into any more trouble.
