The Miami Heat added Kyle Lowry during the 2021 offseason, looking at him as one of the final pieces to their championship puzzle. At the very least, Lowry would be a huge upgrade over Goran Dragic, who was showing clear signs of decline by then. With Jimmy Butler leading the way, Lowry fit the Heat's identity to a T.

However, Lowry has not been as impactful for the Heat as they had hoped when they signed him to a three-year, $85 million deal. At the moment, the veteran point guard finds himself involved in plenty of trade talks as he currently nurses a knee injury. And with the trade deadline approaching, Lowry could very well find himself on the first plane out of South Beach.

Nevertheless, following the Heat's 116-111 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night, Jimmy Butler went to bat for Kyle Lowry amid rumors that the Heat could decide to trade the 36-year old floor general.

“I don't know what's going to happen. But I love Kyle as an NBA player, as a human being. I want to play with Kyle. But so much is out of my control. So much is out of his control. He could be my guy forever. I want him to be my teammate forever. Whatever happens, happens. But that's still going to be my dawg. He ain't going nowhere,” Butler said, per Will Manso of WPLG Local 10 News.

If a player with Jimmy Butler's clout in the organization says that Kyle Lowry is not going anywhere, then perhaps it's best to believe him. Nevertheless, for a team with championship aspirations, there's not much room for sentimentality.

Thus, if the Heat could find a deal involving Lowry that improves the team, you best believe they'd pull the trigger on that one, regardless of Butler's sentiments.