Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, who has missed the last 20 games due to knee and foot injuries, is on the plane to Houston and with “optimism” that he could return Friday against the Rockets, NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic first reported Thursday evening.
There is optimism Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro – out since Feb. 23 with a foot injury – could return to the lineup on Friday vs. the Houston Rockets, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Herro traveled on team’s three-game trip to Houston, Indiana and Atlanta.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 5, 2024
Multiple other beat reporters and team insiders subsequently confirmed he is traveling with the team, though there is no official word on whether he will play or not. Friday marks the first game of the Heat’s final road trip of the regular season, which will come against the Rockets, Indiana Pacers (Sunday) and Atlanta Hawks (Tuesday, April 9).
Tyler Herro is on the plane to Houston with the Heat. No official word yet; I would think he plays tomorrow night.
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) April 5, 2024
Tyler Herro is traveling with the team tonight to Houston.
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) April 5, 2024
Tyler Herro is making the trip to Houston with the Heat, a source confirms
— Five Reasons Sports 🏀🏈⚾️🏒⚽️ (@5ReasonsSports) April 5, 2024
Herro, who turned 24-years-old in January, has not played since Feb. 23 against the New Orleans Pelicans–the Heat’s first game out of the All-Star break. He played 31 minutes, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and one block, shooting 6-of-14 from the floor and 3-of-5 from 3-point range.
The Heat suffered a heartbreaking 109-105 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers Thursday evening (which you can read more about here), falling back to the No. 7 seed in the East after reclaiming the No. 6 seed Wednesday evening in lieu of the Pacers’ four-point loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
Outside of Josh Richardson–who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in early March–Herro was the last rotation player on the injury report entering Thursday, with Caleb Martin, Duncan Robinson and Kevin Love all recently returning from their respective injuries. Though Terry Rozier, who finished the game with 22 points on 6-of-13 shooting from 3-point range, suffered a lower-body injury in the fourth quarter.
After the game, Rozier said he felt better, though his status for Friday’s back-to-back remains unclear.
Terry Rozier says he’s fine despite still limping around the locker room. pic.twitter.com/yMeDdN9SRu
— Wes Goldberg (@wcgoldberg) April 5, 2024
Whether Rozier is active or is unable to play, Herro’s insertion and threat as a shot creator would provide a big boost to an offense that’s a bottom-third unit leaguewide. Herro is averaging 20.8 points on 43.7 percent shooting–including tying a career-best 39.9 percent from 3-point range on 8.7 attempts (45.2 3-point rate)–in addition to 5.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists. Assuming he does play Friday and the rest of the regular season, the most games he will be able to play is 42–or 51.2 percent of the season–which would both be career lows.
Since Herro’s injury, Miami is 11-9 with the No. 18 offense and No. 3 defense; they also are No. 17 in true-shooting percentage, No. 18 in effective field goal percentage and No. 18 in rebounding percentage over that sample. Assuming he’s in rhythm–there’s no guarantee he will be by the regular season’s end–he can effectively help their offensive efficiency and be an above-average rebounding guard.
There’s also a big question about whether he starts or not entering the postseason; there’s a chance he starts in Rozier’s absence, but assuming everyone’s healthy, that may not be the case.
What do you think about his return? Let us know in the comments!
***
This is a breaking news story. Stay tuned for updates.
To check out our other content, click here.
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Twitter/X here!
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Instagram here!
For a guy brought in to be the #4 option after Butler, Bam and Herro, why is Rozier having to carry the team night after night? Team had 17 points in the fourth quarter! WTF??? 8 minutes of crap during crunch time? Disgusting! Shout outs to Love and Highsmith. True Warriors.
P.S. If Herro can play tonight, he could have played last night. What happened to “All hands on deck?”
Exactly.
The ball was like hot potato, always finished in Rosiers hands: I don’t blame him, he did what he could. I blame Jimmy and Bam, nowhere to be seen in crunch minutes.
Those two must be a big factor in crunch minutes, otherwise we are done. Not Terry, not Tyler, Jimmy and Bam, in that order.
You hit the nail on the head! Rozier has been everything I hoped for, and he’s been fearless in his attempt to carry the team. That is NOT what he was brought in to do.
great news although a one way player tired of watching jjj and caleb suk night after night.
Last night Jimmy and Bam sucks, and nobody else.