Over the years, Tyler Herro’s admiration from the Miami Heat executive office has been made known. If it’s not too late, there are a few reasons to trade him, though.
Tyler Herro made a rapid impression on the Miami Heat after being selected in the 2019 draft. He demonstrated a fearless approach in crucial situations and huge moments even as a rookie. His ability to make plays and shoot long range soon made him a valuable member of the team.
Regretfully, Herro hasn’t managed to make that breakthrough yet; years have gone by since that first season. An argument might be made that he peaked in the 2021–2022 NBA season, when he won Sixth Man of the Year. Despite averaging 20.7 points in that season, Herro failed to surpass 20 points in any of his subsequent two season averages.
Herro’s rise with the Heat has finally been hampered by injuries.
In each of his five seasons, he has not participated in more than 67 games. Due to injury, he missed the majority of the postseason in two of the Heat’s most recent postseason runs. He was hindered by a hamstring injury in 2022, which prevented him from playing in the most of the Eastern Conference finals. He broke his hand in the first round’s first game in 2023, and he missed the entire postseason season.
Fans have reason to think Herro may not be as important to the Heat’s success as they think because his absences haven’t prevented the team from winning games throughout the years. Here are three reasons the Miami front management ought to end the Herro timeline at this point.
1. Unwilling to play as a sixth man
Over Herro’s five-year career, the Heat are 93-49 when he comes off the bench. They are 73-67, which is a dismal record to begin with. Stats show that the team might be better off with Herro as a sixth man, and that is a sizable sample size for every scenario of his role in Miami.
After all, a few seasons prior, Herro easily won the title of Sixth Man of the Year in the league. He is capable of carrying out this role and influencing Miami to win. The Heat were the top overall seed in the East that same season that he filled that role. Herro’s scoring obviously gave the second unit, which was led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, some much-needed balance.
With him as a starter in each of the next two seasons, the Heat have barely made it into the postseason as a play-in team. Herro has demonstrated an unwillingness to accept a sixth man’s role, stating multiple times in recent years that he is aware of his status as a “starter in this league.” At this point, it may be evident what is best for the team.
2. Financial flexibility
Over the course of Butler’s five-year tenure, the Heat have found it difficult to remain financially flexible. When Herro inked a substantial contract extension in 2023, it became much harder to do so. When Herro signed a long-term contract, Pat Riley showed faith in him as a player, but the truth is that Miami has been constrained by his roughly $30 million yearly pay.
The financial loss would have been less severe if his performance had merited his large compensation (which will be discussed later). However, it is a hardship to have a player earning the third-highest wage on a team that has had trouble maintaining health and producing at a high level. Over the past two offseasons, the Heat have had little to no cap room available to them to bolster their squad.
They were far into the second apron, especially last year. Because of the new CBA, being embroiled in such grave cap straights imposes numerous restrictions. A mere 5 million dollars a year reduction in Herro’s salary would have made a significant difference in giving the Heat some much-needed breathing room.
3. Consistency/Injuries
Over the years, Herro’s consistency—in both his performance and his health—has been a real issue. Herro has been “fragile,” Riley said in his press conference at the end of the season. Of the 82 games played last season, he saw action in a career-low 42 games. The best quality in this regard is availability, and he has shown that he cannot be counted on to be there.
Herro has found it difficult to be reliable even when he is available and playing. His shooting percentage, which has been about 44% over the past two seasons, isn’t what a $30 million player should be. His 20.8 points per game come from 17.5 field goals, which is far from optimal. Herro was at last fully healthy during the previous postseason, having missed the entire 2023 campaign.
When healthy, the combo guard only played well in two of the seven total playoff and play-in games, failing to take advantage of his opportunity.
Herro is without a doubt a highly skilled and divisive player. But there are a number of problems with this. Considering that he is only 24 years old, the upcoming season may offer him a second chance to finally improve both his physical and all-around performance on the court.
