Tyler Herro was the winner of the 2021-22 Sixth Man of the Year award, and there’s no question that he deserved it. He averaged 20.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 4.0 APG during the regular season.
During the playoffs though, Tyler Herro’s play has faltered slightly. Thus far he is only averaging 13.9 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 2.9 APG throughout the postseason. It is clear that he has been slightly disappointing, and the Miami Heat will need him to step up if they are to beat the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Amar’e Stoudemire has recently criticized Tyler Herro, pointing out that “he wants all this entertainment stuff”, but also rhetorically asking “where is the focus on basketball?”
“Where’s his focus? He wants to wear the shades. He wants to have his back out in the press conference. He wants to do the gun show. He wants all this entertainment stuff, but where is the focus on basketball?”
“After the bubble… he had a great run in the bubble, but ever since then it’s like ‘Where’s the Hero?'”
There’s no doubt that Tyler Herro’s play dipped during the 2020-21 season, but it is fair to say that he improved this season, at least during the regular season. With that being said, Tyler Herro absolutely needs to play better in the playoffs, and provide some supplementary offense next to superstar Jimmy Butler. The Miami Heat cannot rely on solely Jimmy Butler to carry their offense as he did in Game 1.
The Miami Heat are tied with the Boston Celtics at 1-1 this series, and they will need to win a game in Boston to regain home court. They have the talent to win, but somebody needs to step up next to Jimmy Butler. Hopefully, that person can be Tyler Herro. He is one of the rising stars in this league, and it’s time for him to show what he is capable of on the highest stage.
