The Miami Heat dropped a pivotal game Wednesday night to the Chicago Bulls 119-111, and one decision from first-time All-Star Tyler Herro made proved to be costly.
Down five with roughly 45 seconds left, Herro–being attacked in the pick-and-roll–blitzed Coby White off the screen and corralled a steal. Instead of taking the wide-open layup presented to him, Herro stopped on a dime and settled for a 3-pointer, which he missed.
Bulls rookie Matas Buzelis drained a corner triple in semi-transition to make it an eight-point lead, prompting a timeout from Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra.
After the game, Herro spoke about his thought process behind his controversial decision.
“I was feeling that shot, simple as that,” he said. “Looking back at it now, obviously missing the shot, I should’ve layed the ball up. But at the end of the day, I believe I can make that shot. I believe in myself. Imma live and die by that.”
Herro, 25, finished with a game-high 30 points on 13-of-26 shooting, marking his 18th 30-point game of the season and his 15th on 50 percent shooting or better.
On one hand, if he made it, Herro’s 3-pointer would have trimmed the deficit to two, which makes the ensuing possession easier for the Heat if Chicago fails to convert on the other end. He wouldn’t have an easier look from deep in a halfcourt setting than he did on that fastbreak possession
On the other hand, nobody is within earshot of the 6-foot-5 guard with the easiest two points of his career right in front him. Coby White isn’t LeBron James. He’s going to make that layup practically every time. And the Heat would still need a three to win.
As a result of Wednesday’s loss, Miami dropped to 36-44 and will almost certainly be the No. 10 seed ahead of next week’s play-in tournament–barring some ridiculous luck over the next four days. At the time of this publishing, Basketball Reference’s playoff probabilities report gives the Miami Heat a 79.1 chance at the No. 10 seed.
What are your thoughts on Herro’s shot attempt? Let us know in the comments!
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Could he have went for the 2 instead? Sure, that’s what I wanted, but I’m ok with him taking the 3. I’m here for 2 draft picks 🙌
Agreed. If that shot goes in, everyone would be jumping for joy.
still down by 2.im here for the picks
I mean, Jimmy did the same exact thing in the playoffs a few years back, and Tyler is much better than Jimmy from range.
*shrug*
In the moment, sometimes you make an executive decision.
That is an EXCELLENT point!!
prime jimmy and tyler not even close who impacts winning.tylers impact minimized by his bad d.jimmy turns mediocre teams into finals teams.ty turns mediocre teams into mediocre teams
Herro shooting a 3 versus quitter shooting a 3 ? No contest!! It is not about who impacted winning in crunch time more. It is about who would be more likely to make a 3 pointer in clutch time or any time in a game. And that would be Herro hands down!
That missed 3 by quitter in the ecf when the team was down only 2 points was perhaps the dumbest shot in Heat history. Gutsy? Maybe, but dumb. Cost us a chance at another final.
big al was waiting for him rc it wasnt aslam dunk bucket.nobody between ty and hoop.100% a 2 37% a 3.still gonna need a stop and a bucket with tys dum ass shot.jimmys was do i go for the tie which was not a guarantee or for the kill shot.no ? tys was a dummer shot.i applaude ty for his improvement in his game but that was one dum ass shot,jimmy was going for the kill shot.he prob scores on big al but that wasnt a guarantee.i apologize for saying jimmy instead of quitter.didnt feel like going back and deleting his fn name.f jimmy go ty but pls make better decisions in the future wonder man
I am not saying it wasn’t a dumb shot. We were down 2 scores, 5 points. Take the sure 2 and try to get a stop (they didn’t, gave up a 3). He just got caught up in the moment. He had just hit a 3 seconds before and was feeling it.
and on the corner 3 mazuelas made after that ty was in nowhere land.prob the dummest shot id seen in a while selfish egotistical .100% take the 2.
quitters shot was not a dum shot.he was fantastic that series as always.best player on ct.going for that shot no problema with that.
He was fantastic. But for a guy who feasts on drawing fouls, it was a terrible dumb decision to shoot that 3. Drive and score, tie game. Drive, score, and get fouled, maybe go to finals. Drive, miss, get fouled, chance to tie. Shoot an open 3 when you’re not a 3 point shooter, lose. But I expect you will keep trying to get the last word on this and convince me otherwise. That shot killed the chance to go to the FINALS. This shot was to make it a 2 point game fighting for play-in seed #9. Big difference.
What’s next, will you try to convince me that Mashburn passing to Weatherspoon was a great idea? 😆