In advance of the start of training camp on Oct. 3, AllUCanHeat is analyzing the Miami Heat player-by-player. This installment focuses on Tyler Herro who, if he’s on the roster come opening night, faces more pressure than ever.
Take an informal poll of people in and around the NBA about what they think of Tyler Herro and you’re likely to get a wide range of answers.
Some believe the former Sixth Man of the Year is an All-Star in the making, others look past his points and home in on his defensive inefficiencies. Some think most teams can use a scorer like Herro, others say his fit is questionable. Did the Heat miss Herro, who broke his hand in the first game of the playoffs, in the Finals, or was their run fueled by his absence?
Like most things, the truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Herro is a talented scorer who has efficiently averaged 20 points over the past two seasons, but he’s also a limited athlete and playmaker.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe wrote last summer that Herro is “perhaps the most polarizing high-wattage player in the NBA.” That becomes even more true when his value is debated as part of a trade for Damian Lillard.
Whether Herro is included in a deal for Lillard remains to be seen but, if he’s not, his relationship with the organization will be tested. Since being the subject of trade rumors for the second straight summer, Herro removed mention of the Heat from his social media accounts.
No one doubts that Herro would show up to training camp and do his job, but the Heat’s success is predicated on players going above and beyond their duties. Playing 10% harder. Will Herro be inspired to play 10% harder for an organization he may believe is trying to trade him?
Since bursting onto the scene as a rookie in the 2020 playoffs in the Bubble, Herro has improved as an all-around scorer and pick-and-roll ball-handler and has made an effort to get better on defense.
The Heat seem stuck between trying to make Herro a lead facilitator and an off-ball shooting threat. There are games when Herro has the ball in his hands, running high pick-and-roll with Bam Adebayo over and over. There are other games when he’s playing off Jimmy Butler or Kyle Lowry, running around without the ball trying to get open. Is Herro closer to Trae Young or Klay Thompson?
If he’s still on the roster, that’s a question Herro and the Heat will have to work hard to answer.
Tyler Herro
Position: Guard
Ht./Wt.: 6-5/195
College: Kentucky
Years pro: 4
2022-23: 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 34.9 minutes per game
Contract status: In first year of four-year, $120 million deal ($27 million this season)