Heat’s Lowry officially questionable for Game 4 with hamstring injury

Officially, Kyle Lowry is listed as questionable for Game 4 of the Heat’s first-round series against the Hawks due to a hamstring strain.

In reality, he is likely out a couple of weeks because of that hamstring — even for a “mild” Grade 1 strain, players have missed on average 12 days this season — and it would be a shock to see him on the court Sunday in Atlanta.

Lowry is pissed and wants to play. Here’s his quote, via Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald:

“I’m pissed. I wish I was out there,” Lowry said Saturday afternoon after missing the entire fourth quarter of Friday’s defeat. “I feel like if I was out there, it would have been a different situation. But I wasn’t out there. I trust my teammates. The Hawks made a great run.”…

While Lowry wants to push through the pain, he made it clear that he understands “I’ve got to be smart” and “myself and my team, the medical, we all have to be on the same page and all be in agreement.”

Hamstring injuries are not a matter of pain tolerance. It’s an injury that limits speed and mobility, and it’s very easy to re-injure and make worse. It forces a level of inactivity to let it heal that frustrates players, but it’s one where the doctors will be cautious because one wrong step and Lowry can be out much, much longer with the same injury.

Lowry had struggled some through the start of these playoffs, averaging 8.3 points a game (five below his regular season average) and shooting 31.3% from 3.

The Heat lead the series 2-1 after the Hawks took Game 3 at home, setting up a critical Game 4 on Sunday.