Tyler Herro is playing some elite-level basketball right now for the Miami Heat. So much so, that the 22-year-old has emerged as one of the brightest young stars in the NBA today.

For Heat veteran Udonis Haslem, however, Herro's rise is anything but shocking. The three-time NBA champ has been consistent with his high praise of his Heat teammate. As a matter of fact, earlier in the season, Haslem claimed that Herro should be in the same conversation as other young superstars in the league, namely, Luka Doncic and Trae Young. Haslem's rather contentious claim drew a lot of flack from the naysayers and now that Herro has climbed his way to the top, Haslem has decided to clap back at his haters:

“I remember the conversation coming into the season,” Haslem said, via Barry Jackson od the Miami Herald. “People were like, ‘I was crazy to co-sign Tyler being in the conversation with Luka and Trae Young.’ People thought I was crazy to co-sign. I was like, ‘I’m not crazy. I know what I see.’

Haslem backed up his talk with some real facts. According to the 18-year veteran, the fact that Herro is coming off the bench makes his outstanding play even more impressive:

“We talk about guys that get to start and play 30-plus minutes and take 20-plus shots. And a guy that doesn’t start and plays in a more controlled system. Everybody eats here. The ball moves here. If you gave Tyler the opportunity you gave those guys, not saying he would be better than those guys, but he would be just as good. I see the talent and skill set of Tyler every day. I kind of know what I’m talking about. I’m proud of him. He understands all of this, the Sixth Man of the Year, is built around winning. If we’re not winning, none of that matters.”

The man has a point here. Unlike Doncic and Young, who both have extremely high usage rates for their respective teams, Herro shares the court with a handful of other stars in Miami. Then again, this does not necessarily mean that Herro is now at the same level as Luka and Trae. These are two of the biggest names in the game today and for one to say that Herro is right up there with the best of them still remains contentious for most. After all, these are two cornerstone superstars we're talking about here who have both emerged as the face of their respective franchises. At this point, I'm not sure if the Heat are ready to hand that honor to Tyler Herro.

Be that as it may, Haslem remains steadfast in his belief that Herro is an elite player. As a matter of fact, the Heat talisman believes that Herro is the type of player that young kids should watch if they want to master their craft:

“I tell him all the time, if I wanted to put together a video of individual instruction drills and how to do everything right, I would just put him in there,” Haslem said.

“Balance, ball-handling, shooting, finishing, everything. If I were to put together clips of people getting to the bucket and doing their thing with the ball in their hand, it would be Tyler. Everything is pretty much textbook.”

You can choose to agree with Haslem's bold claim about Herro's status in the league or not. What cannot be denied is that this young man has earned his stripes both with the Heat and the NBA. The future is undeniably bright for Tyler Herro.