Heat’s Riley explains why Herro is a franchise ‘anchor,’ reflects on playoff journey
Guard Tyler Herro is generally viewed as the Heat’s most appealing realistic trade chip.
And while that makes Herro’s Heat future uncertain, president Pat Riley made clear how much the team values him.
“Tyler is just an extraordinary scorer and fourth-quarter player, big-time shotmaker,” Riley said Tuesday of the fourth-year guard who averaged 20.1 points last season. “He’s 23 years old. And last year he was out in the Eastern Conference finals almost four games with a groin. And this year he broke his hand. I’m a loose-ball guy, ball on the floor, first guy to the ball. I’m going to caution him about his shooting hand.”
“But we missed him. We missed him. People don’t understand just how lethal he is in those moments. He gets bigger in the biggest of moments. He just does. You’ve seen it time and again, from the [2020 Disney] bubble to here. So we’ve got two young anchors, in Bam [Adebayo] and Tyler.”
Herro — who missed most of the playoffs with a fractured right hand — ultimately might be needed as a key player in a package to acquire Portland’s Damian Lillard, if the seven-time All Star guard requests a trade. Tampering rules prevented Riley from addressing speculation about Lillard or any player on another team.
THIS AND THAT
Riley, recounting the team’s playoff experience, said there was a “residual reward” to playing so many close games during the regular season.
“We saw it in the playoffs, that there was never any fear at the end of games,” he said. “So, we missed out on the sixth spot, which we’re all disappointed in, because we had to play in. We were hammered by Atlanta [in the play-in game].
“And there was about two minutes to go in the Chicago [play-in] game, and we’re down one, and this is what I like about the season, it was all down to the wire. It was exciting. And Jimmy Butler makes a 360-spinning layup to put us ahead by one and we close it out. And there’s a relief.”
Riley said: “I’ve seen a lot of things in my career, but I have not experienced a year like this in a playoff run. And then we go up to Boston and we beat them double digits [in Game 7] and we’re in the Finals.”
Riley added: “I really thought against Denver, as great a team as they were, when we got that second game, I said, ‘we got a real shot. This is going to happen.’ And that was it. That was our last win.”
“But we had a great year. I’m not going to go back on this season and say anything else other than kudos to our players, to our coaching staff, to everybody that was able to put us through one of the most exhilarating, exhausting, stressed . . . I’m still sleep-deprived. But that’s when I start watching Garfield in the middle of the night.”
▪ Riley said Butler “has done everything he can do within his power. Last year, if he could take that three back [in Game 7 against Boston in 2022], he would have made it.
“He was incredible in the beginning [of the 2023 playoffs], and then welcome to big-time game planning [against him]. I don’t think anyone game-planned Jimmy like Denver did.
“But also over the course of nine weeks and 25 games as teams are scouting for the next round, they see what you do and they know who to sell out on and they know who to really cover. So Jimmy, they made it very difficult for him.”
Riley added of Butler: “I would like to try to get him more support. If that comes through the growth of our young players, especially Bam and Tyler. If something happens with some of our other guys. But right now, it’s on his shoulders. That happens with a lot of great players.
“I would love to be able to go out there and pick who I want as a perfect complement to him. It’s not that easy, but we will work toward that and I will pat him on the back the next time I see him.”
▪ On Dwyane Wade being inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer: “I love him to death. He’s a forever guy. He’s so deserving. If I could do [my Hall of Fame induction] over, I would do mine over and say something different than what I said.”
▪ Riley said Kevin Love, added in the buyout market during the All-Star break, “changed the dynamic of our team. Sometimes it doesn’t have to be a huge trade” to achieve that.
The Heat can pay Love as much as $3.8 million next season if it chooses to try to re-sign him.
▪ Riley, on retiring Udonis Haslem: “I texted him the other day. I didn’t bring him in for an exit meeting, I’ve had enough of those… I said to him, ‘Chill out, go spend time with your family and your friends and some day we’ll talk in the future about things.’”
Haslem has said he would have interest in Heat ownership, with an active role.
▪ Riley said of Erik Spoelstra: “We have who I think he’s the best coach in the league.”
This story was originally published June 20, 2023 at 5:14 PM.
