Consistency
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith recently appeared as a guest on Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller’s podcast. Here is what he had to say about Herro,
"I like Herro. Herro can ball. So why are we talking about somebody else coming to the Heat?" Smith said. "We wouldn’t be talking about what Jimmy needs to do or the Miami Heat needed if Tyler brought his A-game every night."
It sounds like Stephen A. believes that Herro can be a star if he consistently plays the way he is capable of. We have seen Herro show flashes of being a star. He can score in bunches, averaging over 20 points per game over the last three seasons.
However, something is missing from Herro when the Heat need him to step up. Part of this lack of consistency comes from injury. Another part of it is performing poorly on the court.
When the Heat faced the Boston Celtics in the 2020 playoffs, Herro was the difference maker. As a rookie, Herro dropped an efficient 37 points to give the Heat a 3-1 series lead.
Against the Celtics this postseason, the Heat needed more from Herro, especially with Butler out, but they didn’t get that. Instead, Herro shot the ball poorly, turned the ball over often, and failed to score over 20 points in four out of the five games.
Herro can be a difference-maker for the Heat when he is healthy. The Heat haven’t seen their core's full potential because someone is always unavailable during the playoffs. With a better, more consistent Herro, the Heat have a chance to compete in the Eastern Conference.