LOS ANGELES — Down 1-3 in the series and facing elimination ahead of today’s Game 5 of the NBA Finals at the Ball Arena in Denver, the Miami Heat got a bit of good news.
“He (Tyler Herro) is available,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters some 90 minutes before tip-off.
Out with a broken hand for a month and a half where he has missed a total of 21 playoff games, the 23-year-old shooting guard could be the spark needed by the Heat.
In his absence, the Heat’s supporting cast — Caleb Martin, Max Struss, Gabe Vincent and Kyle Lowry — have all stepped and helped Miami get past the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics to advance to the championship round.
In these NBA Finals, though, they all have struggled as the Heat lost Games 3 and 4 on their home floor — the Kaseya Center — by a combined 28 points.
Herro is not expected to log heavy minutes but Miami is taking on the “all hands-on deck” mentality.
Obviously, it remains to be seen how much impact Herro brings but desperate times demand desperate measures.
Picked 19th overall by the Heat in the 2019 NBA draft, Herro played 67 regular games where he averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per.
On December 2022 he was signed to a four-year $120 million extension.
