Miami Heat Guard Tyler Herro Targeted as Defensive Liability By Cleveland Cavs
Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro comes off his finest season as a pro, yet remains arguably the most polarizing member on the roster. Despite making the Eastern Conference All-Star team, becoming 3-point Contest champion, posting career-bests in scoring average, assists and other categories, Herro can’t escape heavy scrutiny.
In averaging 34 points per game in the play-in wins over the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks, shooting 8-for-17 from 3-point range, Herro silenced even his most vocal critics in spite of 11 combined turnovers.
Remaining in everyone’s good graces didn’t last long.
Herro did score 21 points in Sunday’s 121-100 Game 1 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, but shot just 7-for-18 (38.9%), and most concerning, was picked on mercilessly on the defensive end.
Herro didn’t exclusively get torched one-on-one, but the Cavs targeted him to ensure he was involved in their actions, picking him off, making him work on switches and challenging him to work. Defense isn’t an area of strength for the sixth-year guard, and it didn’t help that Cleveland Sixth Man of the Year finalist Ty Jerome went on a fourth-quarter heater to put the game away.
Cleveland ultimately scored 64 points on the 36 possessions where Herro was targeted, and it’s not a situation that Erik Spoelstra can fix unless he pulls his most natural scorer off the floor. There’s no hiding a guard when the opposing team has All-Star playmakers like Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, Jerome, and shooters like Max Strus and Sam Merrill.
CBS Sports broke down how Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson was able to take advantage of Herro’s porous defense down the stretch in Game 1. Even with standout defenders like Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell at Spoelstra’s disposal to play alongside Herro, picks and screens mean more carnage is coming unless Cleveland’s snipers go cold.
A poll on the Five Reasons Sports X account asked what an appropriate per season contract should be for Herro’s next contract, and the majority of votes felt the Miami guard should earn $40 million or fewer.
It’s not quite the Orlando Sentinel poll that helped Shaquille O’Neal leave the Magic for the L.A. Lakers back in 1996, but is nevertheless a good barometer of the current level of satisfaction with an oft-criticized All-Star guard whose weaknesses and limitations have hindered the Heat in a sub-.500 season despite his improved offensive efficiency.
Count on the microscope again being on Herro in Wednesday’s Game 2, and expect him to be run through the ringer defensively until he can consistently help come up with stops.
Tony Mejia is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at [email protected]
