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MIAMI – As the Miami Heat beat the Los Angeles Lakers in monstrous fashion on Wednesday night, 134-93, snapping a two-game skid, the highlight of the game was the impeccable shooting of star Tyler Herro. It spoiled the return of Lakers star LeBron James to his old Heat stomping grounds as Herro continues with his impressive season, speaking about taking advantage of the opposing defense.
Herro would finish the game with 31 points as he shot 11 of 19 from the field and nine of 16 from three-point range, but it was the third quarter where he shined the brightest. He would start the period making his first seven shots from beyond the arc as he ties his most points in a quarter with 21 points and is the second Miami player ever to make that many from that range.
The University of Kentucky product would start the game relatively cold, shooting four of 11 from the field and two of eight from deep. However, he overwhelmed the Lakers in the second half, being unable to stop Herro from receiving open looks as he even said after the game that there were missed opportunities.
“I mean, I was open all night, honestly,” Herro said. “I honestly should have made a couple more in the first half, I got crazy looks all night…I shot the same shot that I shot in the first half and ended up making them. There was good looks in the first half. I shot eight threes and just kept shooting. Trusted my shot. Trusted the work, and they ended up to fall.”
Heat's Tyler Herro is “one of the best shooters on the planet”
Herro's shot chart has no doubt changed this season compared to prior, where he is focusing on attempts close to the rim and from three-point range. So far this season, it has paid off tremendously as he has made 86 total from deep, which is second in the entire NBA, to Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards' 90.
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra would not hesitate after the game in saying that Herro is “one of the best shooters on the planet” and would even say it's not that crazy to think he could attempt 20 three-pointers in a game.
“Well, you know what I like about it is he's one of the best shooters on the planet, and he's ignitable,” Spoelstra said. “So if you just stay with it, at any point, he can go on one of those avalanches. But you know, you give him open threes, which the last couple of games, he was getting good looks, and that's just the nature of the game. Sometimes it doesn't go for you, but those are great looks, and then you're still able to do other things.”
“But you know, if you stay with it, then you have that chance for that avalanche, and that's we saw in the third quarter,” Spoelstra continued. “Because when he sees, like, three go, it can go to six super fast. And he got 16 attempts up? Imagine if he got 20, Is that unreasonable?… Again, it always has to be, you know, the relationship between our attacks and that. But you know our attackers want our guys shooting like that. So we'll continue to work on that, but the guys are trying to make it easier for each other.”
Heat star Bam Adebayo speaks about Tyler Herro's “moment”
This was a performance that Herro needed coming off the Heat's loss to the Boston Celtics last Monday, where he shot six of 19 from the field and two of 10 from three. He would emphasize how if he gets into a shooting funk, making an easy 15-footer wouldn't be easier than trying a three, amplifying his offensive philosophy this season.
If there was one player who was happy to see Herro's star performance, it was the Heat's captain Bam Adebayo, who had a bounce-back game, scoring 14 points on six for eight shooting along with 10 rebounds and seven assists. He would say that Herro is having a “moment right now,” which is satisfying to see after how the “media and fans have dogged him.”
“Considering a lot of media and fans have dogged him in the past due to past performances, this is his moment right now,” Adebayo said. “He's having his moment. And when you see somebody having that, he enjoyed my moments, so for me, just feelings mutual. I'm happy for him going out there doing what he does, which is getting buckets.”
At any rate, Miami is now 10-10 on the season as the schedule doesn't get any easier as they prepare for a back-to-back Saturday against the Phoenix Suns and Sunday facing the Cleveland Cavaliers.
