Miami Heat’s Tyler Herro Has All But Solidified First All-Star Berth

Coming into the season, nobody other than Tyler Herro predicted he would have this type of season.

All offseason, the talk was about Bam Adebayo leaping to stardom, Terry Rozier fitting better within the Miami Heat system and providing a new spark, and Jimmy Butler playing like his Playoff Jimmy moniker in the regular season. Although Butler is having one of the most efficient seasons of his career when available, none of the others have come true.

And then there was Herro who has been consistently the best player for the Heat as 2024 comes to an end.

Herro is averaging 24 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.2 assists on 47.6 percent shooting and 41 percent from three-point range.

His newfound success is because he is also the top candidate for the Most Improved Player award. Herro is averaging career highs in points, rebounds, assists, field goal percentage, and three-point percentage. A significant reason for this is because he changed his game by taking a more analytical approach.

Herro doubled his rim attempts per game, which has led to a career-high in free-throw attempts and free-throw rate. He also only takes long mid-range shots as a last-resort option. He did in his winning Dec. 26 against the Orlando Magic or Sunday against the Houston Rockets to give the Heat the lead with 1:56 remaining.

Herro is on on track to become the fourth player in NBA history to average four 3-pointers a game on 40 percent shooting. The other three players are Klay Thompson, Damian Lillard and Stephen Curry.

What’s arguably more impressive is Herro is one of only five players in the league averaging at least 24 points, five rebounds, and five assists with a true shooting percentage of 60 percent. The other four players are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, Jayson Tatum, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who are strong MVP candidates this year.

Bryan Townes is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at [email protected] or on X @bryantownesjr11. Follow our coverage on Facebook.