‘You know pretty much every play is going’ to Herro. And opponents helpless to prevent it
There is no more catching anybody by surprise.
Opponents know full well what’s coming when Tyler Herro checks into a game.
And they seem helpless to prevent it.
“You know pretty much every play is going to him,” Houston coach Stephen Silas lamented last week after Herro scored 31 points in 30 minutes against the Rockets.
Two nights earlier, 76ers Doc Rivers bemoaned: “Tyler just beats us up, both hands.”
The question has become: What exactly can you take away?
Very little has deterred Herro during this post-All Star break stretch when he’s averaging 25.0 points in 10 games, while shooting 50.6 percent from the field and 46.5 percent on threes. The past week featured 21- and 18-point second quarters.
“His confidence is really exploding right now,” coach Erik Spoelstra said after Herro scored 30 in Saturday’s 113-104 loss to Minnesota. “He’s generating so many good things for us. As a scorer, but also now as a playmaker.”
Defenders feel like they’ve done all they can if they keep him from driving for those polished runners or layups.
But then, “he hits some tough step-back shots in the corner,” Philadelphia’s Tyrese Maxey said.
Udonis Haslem watches this remarkable evolution of a young player and isn’t the least bit surprised.
During training camp, Herro caught some flack for saying he would like to reach the level of Trae Young and Luka Doncic; some incorrectly believed he was putting himself on that level.
“I remember the conversation coming into the season,” Haslem said. “People were like, ‘I was crazy to co-sign Tyler being in the conversation with Luka and Trae Young.’ People thought I was crazy to co-sign. I was like, ‘I’m not crazy. I know what I see.’
“We talk about guys that get to start and play 30-plus minutes and take 20-plus shots. And a guy that doesn’t start and plays in a more controlled system. Everybody eats here. The ball moves here. If you gave Tyler the opportunity you gave those guys, not saying he would be better than those guys, but he would be just as good. I see the talent and skill set of Tyler every day. I kind of know what I’m talking about. I’m proud of him. He understands all of this, the Sixth Man of the Year, is built around winning. If we’re not winning, none of that matters.”
Herro is averaging 23 points per 36 minutes, which ranks 19th in the league. Young and Doncic are fifth and sixth at 28.8 and 28.4.
But Herro averages 19.1 shots per 36 minutes, compared with 21.1 for Young and 22 for Doncic. At 44.1 percent from the field, Herro is just above one percent below each of their shooting percentages.
If he started, “I’m sure he could average 25” points per game instead of his current 20.9, Haslem said.
Over the season “I think he’s figured out that we need him to get 18-to-25 points for us to be a successful group long-term,” Kyle Lowry said.
But the most impressive aspect of this post All Star break run has been the polish and diversity of Herro’s offensive game.
“I tell him all the time, if I wanted to put together a video of individual instruction drills and how to do everything right, I would just put him in there,” Haslem said.
“Balance, ball-handling, shooting, finishing, everything. If I were to put together clips of people getting to the bucket and doing their thing with the ball in their hand, it would be Tyler. Everything is pretty much textbook.”
Spoelstra acknowledged over the weeknd that “it’s gotten to the point where we’re dependent” on his scoring. “He’s really making improvements defensively as well. Off the ball, he’s showing much more awareness and activity on the weak side [defensively].”
Lowry said the “next level” for Herro is “him becoming a better playmaker. He’ll become a better passer and creator but still get to his spots and be able to do both things as well as the other.” Herro is averaging 3.8 assists, compared with 2.6 turnovers.
Phoenix All-Star guard Devin Booker, a player that Herro admires and has studied, has admired his growth from afar.
“I have a lot of respect for him [and] what he’s doing,” Booker said. “He’s been playing his [butt] off this year and I’ve been watching him. He has a very bright future.”
MORRIS BACK
With Markeiff Morris back from a 58-game absence and Victor Oladipo set to play at home against Detroit on Tuesday after a game off, the Heat - at some point in the coming days - will have a full roster for the first time all season.
Morris - who had six points, four rebounds and four turnovers in 17 minutes on Saturday - “is going to give us more spacing and mismatches,.. is going to be very important to us in a stretch run,” Lowry said.
Morris, who was cleared to return by the NBA 2 1/2 hours before Saturday’s tip-off, said: “I’m just thankful and grateful to be able to play the game I Iove. I’m the type of player you can just plug in.”
Denver’s Nikola Jokic hasn’t reached out to Morris since pushing him in the back in a game on Nov. 8, causing whiplash that led to an extended absence. “[Expletive] no, I don’t want to hear from him,” Morris said. “He did what he did.”
The Heat, reluctant to clear Morris because of that injury coupled with a 2019 neck injury, deferred to the NBA, which used a three-doctor panel to determine he could play.
Did Morris feel anger in recent months?
“For the first two weeks, I probably didn’t sleep based on that happening and me not being able to control the situation,” he said. “I moved past it. It took me a while. My grandfather called me a bunch of times and just told me to let it go and move on. That’s what I did.”
This story was originally published March 13, 2022 at 11:00 AM.
