Tyler Herro is shining this season as the best player on the Miami Heat, becoming the team’s offensive engine after developing on a contending roster over the last five years. With Herro making All-Star noise for himself, it seems like the Heat hit it out of the park when they drafted him at No. 13 in the 2019 NBA Draft.
The selection of Herro by the Heat was fortuitous, as Herro revealed to Udonis Haslem on the OGs Shows that he was promised a spot on the Boston Celtics, who had the No. 14 pick that year.
“When I saw the numbers of the team and where they’re drafting and that Miami was 13, I was set on it months before the Draft. On Draft night, the Celtics had the 14th pick and had guaranteed to pick me for the most part, and then Miami took me right before at 13 so it was a blessing.”
The Celtics ended up drafting Romeo Langford instead, with Langford averaging 4.6 points and 2.1 rebounds in his 3-year NBA career.
Herro, on the other hand, has averaged 18.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in his career on the Heat. He has been an integral piece of their 2020 and 2023 NBA Finals run, won the 2022 Sixth Man of the Year award, and will likely be the torch-bearer of the franchise as Jimmy Butler looks to be on his way out.
The Langford selection didn’t hurt the Celtics for long, as the failed prospect was traded to the San Antonio Spurs in 2022 for Derrick White. White played a crucial role in the Celtics 2024 Championship win, so there are definitely no regrets on Boston’s side to have missed out on Herro.
Herro is averaging 23.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 5.0 assists this season. He’ll be expected to be the team’s bonafide option going forward as Butler is expected to get traded within the next month. Regardless, the team has played through Herro a lot more this season.
Tyler Herro Was A Heat Superfan
Before discussing the Celtics’ interest in drafting him, Herro revealed that he grew up as a massive Miami Heat fan. His fandom got even stronger when LeBron James joined the franchise in 2009, with the 24-year-old guard saying he had the Heat logo painted on the wall of his room.
“I was a big fan of the Heat… I was a LeBron fan, a big one. I was one of Bron’s biggest fans. I was a Miami Heat fan, prior to that, and when Bron came, it stamped that. I used to have an Antoine Walker jersey. I had my own room, an all-white wall, and my parents had a painter come through and paint the whole wall in the Miami Heat logo.”
This is definitely a dream come true for Herro, who is now leading the franchise on the court. While he has had his share of ups and downs, he has fully bought into Heat culture and become a franchise piece for them over the last few seasons.
Even with all the criticisms against Herro’s style of play and effort on the court, he has earned the respect of one of the most daunting front offices in the NBA. Now, he’ll lead the franchise into the rest of the 2020s as they try to figure out the future of the franchise post-Jimmy Butler.
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