Tyler Herro on Five on the Floor: “The Game Slowed Down”

Tyler Herro joined Ethan Skolnick and Alex Toledo on the latest episode of Five on the Floor. He talked about his rookie season, the NBA bubble, and more. Here’s what was said…

#1: “I was telling people back home before the series started, we’re gonna win in 4 or 5.”

When referring to the second round series with the Milwaukee Bucks, he mentioned that he told people back home that it’ll be a 4 or 5 game series. Well, that was pretty spot on after Miami beat the Bucks in five. He also mentioned that it was his “little way of getting back at the Milwaukee people,” when referring to some incidents in his previous basketball years, choosing Kentucky over Wisconsin. His town didn’t respond well too that decision, which made for some very entertaining high school basketball games during his senior year. That might’ve been the beginning of that Tyler Herro swagger, when he had to overcome the haters, which clearly he did.

#2: “There were people saying I wouldn’t play in the NBA, and I’m playing in the NBA.”

Tyler also talked about a pinned tweet on his twitter profile that says “Shoutout to everyone doubting me.” He mentioned that there were people saying that he wouldn’t play at Kentucky, which he did. And then there were people saying he wouldn’t play in the NBA, which he is. He finishes saying that “I’m sure there’s still people doubting me, but I’m gonna try and keep it up for as long as I can.” And now that he’s a Miami Heat player, he must embrace hate. That’s what has seemed to drive this team all season. And with the immense amount of confidence that Tyler has in himself, no amount of hate could slow him down.

#3: “I told him (Dwyane Wade) if there’s anything that he sees to just let me know.”

Tyler Herro mentioned that the last time he talked to Dwyane Wade was after game one when he had a near triple double. He said that he made sure to let Dwyane know that if he ever notices anything in his game to let him know. This got brought up when discussing how similar his stats are to Dwyane’s in his rookie playoff run, which Tyler mentioned that he wasn’t aware of those similarities. This is just another clear indication of how many helpful veterans he has around him. Tyler mentioned how lucky he is to have guys like Jimmy, Goran, and UD to give him advice, saying that other rookies he’s talked to have said that not everyone has that.

#4: “I felt like the three would be a better shot, and it was.”

Tyler also got to discussing some of his most memorable shots during the regular season, starting with the one against the Philadelphia 76ers. He mentioned that he didn’t attack the rim since it was a three on one, so he felt the three would be a better shot, “which it was.” He also brought up the game against the Chicago Bulls, when he hit two big time threes off of Jimmy Butler dishes. But now there’s no need to look back at these, since he’s hitting huge shots down the stretch of big time playoff games. He seems to be taking one leap after the next every single night. And now he has an opportunity to make the NBA finals in his rookie year, being a huge contributor to the success.

#5: “I think the game really slowed down for me on that side of the floor.”

Tyler said that he thinks the game slowed down for him on the defensive side of the floor, which has led to his major improvements. Most of the time with these kinds of issues, guys just need more reps and playing time. And since Tyler has played the most fourth quarter minutes on the team, he has had plenty of time to understand that side of the floor. He also mentioned that a huge reason for his improvements was the time off with his injury. He said this gave him a chance to actually watch the game from the sideline, and gain a new perspective. He also took this time to watch a bunch of film on guys like Devin Booker, which has improved some on-ball spacing and things of that nature. All of these improvements have happened in one season, which says that he has much more time to grow even more.