Tyler Herro will miss 3rd straight ECF game for Miami Heat
Facing elimination, the Miami Heat will be without its 20-point per game scorer.
First reported by Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Heat shooting guard Tyler Herro will not play in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, which is scheduled to begin Friday night at 8:30 p.m. EST on ESPN. Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra confirmed the news shortly after Haynes’ report.
Herro sat out both Games 4 and 5 for Miami due to a left groin strain he suffered in the fourth quarter of Game 3. The 22-year-old went through a Friday morning shootaround but is still not healthy enough to take the floor. The Celtics lead the series 3-2 and would advance to the 2022 NBA Finals with a win over the Heat in Boston.
“It’s not relevant to get into all the details, he is just not able to play,” Spoelstra said, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “As badly as he wants to be out there, this is the most responsible decision for us.”
Herro had a special third year in the NBA this past season. He jumped his scoring average from 15.1 points per game in 2020-21 to 20.7 in 2021-22. The former Kentucky Wildcat also averaged 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per contest while shooting 44.7 percent from the field, 39.9 percent from distance, and 86.8 percent from the free-throw line.
Unfortunately, his spectacular regular-season play hasn’t followed him into the playoffs.
Herro is averaging just 13.5 points per game for Miami across his 14 appearances while shooting 23.2 percent from beyond the arc. He’s posted just two games of 20-plus points and was being held to a low overall shooting percentage of 39 percent by Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals.
That being said, the Heat have been desperate for a scoring punch over the last few outings. Miami scored just 80 points in the Game 5 loss, shooting an incredibly poor 7-45 (15.6 percent) from distance. At the very least, Herro would draw attention from the stingy Boston defense. Miami sure could use it, too. Jimmy Butler is playing through injury, Kyle Lowry is a shell of himself, and Bam Adebayo is being forced to do too much.
According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, this type of injury would typically keep Herro out for two to four weeks if this were the regular season. There was some talk Herro might return early for Game 5, but it would appear that the franchise is playing it safe and will hold him out for Game 6, as well.
Miami’s chances of forcing a Game 7 aren’t looking too great.
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