Heat’s Erik Spoelstra reveals Tyler Herro’s gameplan vs. Hawks

Herro’s 36 points came off an efficient night where he made 13 of 17 from the field as well as hitting on four of six from three-point range to go along with four assists, three rebounds, and two steals. Spoelstra would say to ClutchPoints after the game that the “best part” of his performance was he did not “run one specific play for him.”

“Tyler was so efficient,” Spoelstra said. “And the best part about it is he did this entire game mostly off the ball. I didn’t run one specific play for him. He got 36 just on the move, within the context of the game. He’s learning how to manipulate when guys are really being aggressive with him. He can be a great screener, he can play off the ball, he can backcut, he can do a lot of those different things. That’s great growth to see.”

Being the main focal point of the offense, some may find that shocking for Spoelstra to hear that, but with the way defenses have been playing against Herro, it’s led others on Miami to take up more offensive responsibility, especially Andrew Wiggins. Herro still found a way to get the ball in his hands and work his magic as he said after the game that it’s really being “aggressive” that led to his big night.

“Just being aggressive on every catch, really that’s it. Every time I caught the ball, looking to attack,” Herro said.

Heat’s Tyler Herro has gone through multiple plans on his shot chart

As Herro made his first All-Star appearance for the Heat in his career, it has shown how many strides he has taken this season, leading the team in averaging 23.6 points and 5.6 assists per game. However, the start of the season showed way more effectiveness as he had a distinct shot chart focused on three-point and close-to-the-basket attempts.

Now that defenses have been started to scout him and play harder defense, he has had to adjust, especially when he’s seen as the lone offensive engine with the suspensions to Jimmy Butler and later when Wiggins missed a handful of games. Spoelstra spoke about Herro’s shot chart and explained how it’s changed.

“His shot chart is great when we have everybody available,” Spoelstra said. “That’s just the reality. You look at it earlier in the year, the shot chart was great. Scoring was easy, off the catch, playing off the move, getting open catch-and-shoot threes. And then when we’re dealing with a bunch of guys who are out, he has to generate a lot of offense for us. That’s a different kind of role. And everybody knows it, we know it, the other team knows it.”

“So at that point, the shot chart would change, you know, especially when Wiggs wasn’t available, or other games when two or three other guys weren’t available,” Spoelstra continued. “And I’m fine with that shot chart because if he’s not taking those shots under those circumstances, we’re probably not getting something better. But he’s mindful of it. He understands it, so you’re already seeing it look a little bit different now that Wiggs is back and he has the ability to do both. He can toggle back and forth, which also, I think is important.”

Heat’s Tyler Herro admits he didn’t like recent shot chart

Especially during the Heat’s 10-game losing streak, Herro would suffer on his efficiency, but in the last three games, it’s been a mix of the plan at the beginning of the season and what he’s done earlier in his career. After the win over the Charlotte Hornets last Sunday, he admitted he didn’t like the recent shot chart.

“I don’t like it,” Herro said. “I didn’t really like the last month, honestly, just the way everything’s been going. We’ve been losing, but my shot profile has definitely kind of gotten back to the years past, you know, mid-range shots, floaters, and stuff like that. The way guys are guarding me now, I’m not getting the same catch-and-shoot threes I was getting at the beginning of the year, and even my pull-up threes off the bounce aren’t the same I was getting early on.”

“A lot of guys are glued to me or switching or being up on the pick and roll,” Herro continued. “So just finding different ways to be aggressive. I’m not going to get the same shots every game, just the way guys are guarding, but you got to find different ways to be efficient, also the context of the game, knowing when to shoot the pull-up two which I think I’m doing pretty well.”

At any rate, Herro and Miami look to end the season on a positive note as they look for four straight wins on Saturday against the Philadelphia 76ers as the team is 32-41 which puts them 10th in the East.