Heat guard Tyler Herro ruled out for Game 3 of NBA Finals

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After initial reports suggested that Tyler Herro could make his return to the hardwood by Game 3 of the NBA Finals, that hope has since been wiped away.

The Miami Heat shooting guard has been ruled out for Wednesday night’s Game 3 action against the Denver Nuggets, according to multiple reports. The former Kentucky Wildcat has been sidelined since April 16 when he suffered a broken shooting hand in Game 1 of Miami’s first-round matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks. Herro underwent surgery less than a week later on April 21 and there was hope he would return sometime during the NBA Finals.

But as we inch closer to Game 3, Herro’s return to the floor does not appear imminent. The series is tied 1-1 with Wednesday night’s action set to take place in Miami at 8:30 p.m. EST on ABC.

“We’re taking it one day at a time,” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said on Tuesday, shortly before Herro was ruled out. “And I know that sounds like a cliché. He did the practice with the group. He is going to do a full-contact workout after this. We’ll evaluate that. We’ll meet with the training staff later on today and probably [Wednesday], and we’ll just continue this process. He has not been cleared yet, so that’s where we are. But we’re encouraged by the work that he’s been doing.”

Herro has been ramping up for a return since the Finals began, participating in pregame shooting drills ahead of Games 1 and 2. That being said, he recently told ESPN reporter Ros Gold-Onwude that he is experiencing “soreness and swelling” in his hand after going through his shooting motion.

Reporting from #NBAFinals: I spoke with Tyler Herro ahead his Game 2 pregame routine and he told me he experiences both soreness and swelling in the right hand after shooting and he can feel the soreness when he’s making a “follow through” shooting motion. He also shared his…
— Ros Gold-Onwude (@ROSGO21) June 5, 2023

In spite of Herro’s absence in these playoffs, the Heat has been playing the best basketball of its season with him on the sidelines. Entering the field as an eight-seed, Miami is just the second-ever squad to make it to the NBA Finals as the lowest-ranked team, joining the 1998-99 New York Knicks. The Nuggets took Game 1 off Miami in Denver but saw the Heat fight back to steal Game 2.

The main concern with bringing back Herro at this stage revolves around disrupting team chemistry, which he noted in his conversation with Gold-Onwude. Even still, Miami would surely welcome back the addition of a player who averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists this season on shooting splits of 43.9/37.8/93.4, even if he plays a reduced role off the bench.

Game 4 is set for Friday, June 9 in Miami, where we’ll wait to see if Herro suits up for the first time in nearly two months.