Herro ball: Tyler’s a Big Bucket of Hope

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Let’s cut to the chase and get right to what everyone is thinking. What on earth are we watching right now from Tyler Herro?

His latest performance against the Hawks was no exception, 23 points in 25 minutes, 9-14 from the field, 5-7 from downtown, 5 rebounds.

As someone who has followed every Heat rookie from Khalid Reeves to players who took the floor with DJ Khaled courtside, Tyler Herro looks different.

I’m not saying he is better than any previous Heat rookie, or even comparing his potential or career trajectory when I say Herro looks different.

Tyler Herro just has a mix of confidence, swagger and polish that is further developed than any Heat player his age ever. Yes, ever.

I asked him about that confidence.  After he almost blushed, laughing innocently at the question amongst his peers who were hyping him up in the background, he responded like this:

One teammate exclaimed “Tell him you’re a hooper T”

Herro instead modestly replied, “I put in a lot of work so I believe in myself when I’m out there”

Savvy answer from a 19 year old NBA rookie.

But his teammate was on point. Tyler Herro is a hooper indeed.

A hooper that, combined with the arrival of Jimmy Buckets, has Heat fans playing in traffic filled streets of hope.

Certain specific basketball functions do stand out when it comes to Herro hope. The unique mix of shooting accuracy, balance, play making, nifty footwork, I could go on and on. It all has been immensely impressive thus far.

Footwork that somehow translates into moves that while executing, make him look like he thinks he is significantly better than the opposing defender scrambling to keep up. I don’t know why it looks like that or what it means. It just does.

The swagger makes more sense when you know who Herro initially patterned his game after.

In his very early years:

“I liked Kobe, I looked up to Kobe all the time.”

Even Heat fans who have had one too many Wade vs Kobe debates have to appreciate studying Bryant in this context. Maybe that is where the polished footwork began to be cultivated.

As Tyler matured, the great players he studied evolved.

“Once I got a little older, I watched a lot of Lebron”


Perhaps where his underrated pull up jumper and playmaking chops, apparently suppressed at Kentucky, began to be developed.

However, he has his eyes on two current NBA players most when he looks for players to emulate. “Nowadays I’m watching Devin Booker, CJ McCollum, players like that.” See any similarities? I sure do. He has quite the gravitational pull to go along with a sweet step back move. Supremely fun to watch.

A player many people, including myself, were hesitant to get excited about initially, has shown more upside than any of the rookies the Heat front office was criticized for passing on back in June’s NBA Draft. The pick makes even more sense when you factor in the apparent inevitability of Jimmy Butler arriving in Miami a few weeks later.

I guess I’m obligated to say it’s only preseason and warn not to get ahead of ourselves when measuring levels of hope associated with what we’ve seen from Tyler Herro so far.

But this kid is special. Special in a way that makes Heat fans hope Herro ball is here to stay.

Right? Right.

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