The Miami Heat thought they may have had a legitimate ‘third guy’ after Tyler Herro’s rookie year and though a bumpy second season, he still may be.
Before you get in your feelings about how it is too early for Tyler Herro or how he has a lot to prove before we put All-Star expectations on him, remember this: Herro put his stamp on playoff games in the bubble. That is no small thing and the expectations should meet that accomplishment.
The next hurdle for the Kentucky product is building a complete season. Take a look at Herro’s stats on a month to month basis from last season.
From January to April, his points-per-game average ebbed and flowed from 17 points to 12. His shooting percentages from the field were a rollercoaster, rising to 48 percent and falling to 35.
It gets worse when you look at his three-point percentage, which topped out at 42 percent and bottomed out at 26. It could be argued that less is more with Herro and as his minutes changed, so did his production.
And there is a case to be made that Herro was simply finding his role as a heat-check player off the bench. Herro did finish the season averaging 16 points, while shooting 54 percent from the field and 48 percent from three in May, all in just over 27 minutes per contest.
In the coming season, he needs to prove that he has found his spot on the roster and a rhythm by staying consistent, game in and game out. He has proven he can play at another level, but he has also proven he can bottom out for long stretches of a season.
Consistency is the key when talking what separates regular guys, from rotational guys, to stars, to superstars. Once Herro becomes less of a dice roll, he can find a path to becoming a fringe All-Star player.
All of the guys on this list have that potential though, while two of them have fully shown and maximized it in a given season. With team success, so shall this individual success follow, and you know that’s the goal at Miami Heat headquarters.