Herro: ‘I feel I’ve had an All-Star year to this point.’ Mixed emotions inside Heat
A wide disparity of emotions often flood NBA locker rooms on the night that All-Star teams are announced, and that was very much the case for the Heat late Thursday night in San Antonio.
On one hand, there was the immense pride in Jimmy Butler earning a sixth All-Star invitation, both from Butler and the Heat family.
But Tyler Herro’s disappointment was transparent, and there was empathy from teammates and others.
Herro entered Thursday as the NBA’s leading bench scorer, averaging 19.9 points per game as a reserve. TNT’s Charles Barkley said Herro should have made the All-Star team, but Herro said there was no comfort in that endorsement because “I didn’t make it.”
Herro said he will draw motivation from the snub.
“Of course,” he said. “My whole life I’ve been counted out of multiple All-Star games, high school, college. Nothing new to me. I figured I wouldn’t make it. For some reason, my name isn’t mentioned with All Star games It’s all good....
“It is what it is. I feel I’ve had an All Star year to this point.”
Erik Spoelstra reminded that Herro still has a chance to be named an All-Star replacement for Kevin Durant or any other Eastern Conference player that withdraws because of injury.
Commissioner Adam Silver makes that decision on replacements. But Herro would be an underdog to snag Durant’s spot, because Silver might be inclined to replace a frontcourt player with another forward.
“I wouldn’t slam the door on that yet,” Spoelstra said of Herro appearing in the Feb. 13 NBA showcase in Cleveland. “There are still opportunities to get guys into that weekend. Hopefully he will be considered. He’s been playing at an All Star level. Our guys understand how important he is to our success. He was very good” Thursday, with the 24 points and five assists in a 112-95 win against the Spurs.
And “defensively, he was really competitive as well.”
Like Barkley and TNT’s Kenny Smith, Butler also said Herro warranted an All-Star invitation.
“I think he’s been playing at an All Star level,” Butler said. “He’s been keeping us above water, keeping us afloat with the amount of guys we’ve had in and out of the lineup. He deserves it. But he has a long career… and he’ll be a multiple time All Star.
“We all know he can put the ball in the basket. He does a great job of getting everyone else involved. He’s getting better and better making the right reads.... He keeps playing the way he’s playing, he’s going to be key to us down the road.”
Butler, meanwhile, said a sixth All-Star appearance was just as meaningful as the initial opportunity earlier in his career.
“It’s a hell of an accomplishment for myself and for everybody else,” he said. “It shows the work everybody puts in.”
Heat guard Kyle Lowry said: “Shoutout to Jimmy Butler. He’s going to Cleveland. Our All Star. I’m excited for him. We’re excited for our teammate.”
Spoelstra appreciated the moment for Butler, who is averaging 21.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 6.4 assists.
“You don’t ever want to get so far removed where you can’t acknowledge and respect greatness,” Spoelstra said. “He’s had a fantastic year, all across the board, both ends of the court. Early on, he was off to an MVP type start [before injuries]. I think it’s cool. I don’t know whether he thinks it’s cool.”
LOWRY RETURN
Asked if he needs to get in rhythm after missing nine games because of a family matter, Lowry scanned Thursday’s boxscore and cracked that his six turnovers against the Spurs were “about right.”
Thursday marked the first time the Lowry/Butler/Bam Adebayo/Duncan Robinson/P.J. Tucker starting unit played together since November.
“It’s easy to play with these guys,” said Lowry, who had four assists and missed his only shot from the field in 25 minutes. “These guys are easy to integrate. It’s good to get our flow together. We still had mishaps and miscommunications. That’s going to happen with a group that only played 15 games together. We will watch this film and get better. We want to continue to figure this out. It’s a longterm game for us.”
POP ON SPO
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who has grown close with Spoelstra, said he appreciates the Heat’s coach, who competed against Popovich in two NBA Finals in 2013 and 2014 and worked with him last summer with USA Basketball.
“Spo is the real deal, a genuine good human being who connects with people and works his [butt] off,” Popovich said.
This story was originally published February 4, 2022 at 10:39 AM.
