Tag Archive for: Five Reasons Sports

Tyler Herro is here to silence his doubters

/0 Comments/in /by

Tyler Christopher Herro is not someone who wants to just fade into the background. He is a brash rookie that doesn´t back down from anyone,  but his confidence doesn´t bleed into arrogance and he is also respectful of the coaching staff and the veterans that are eager to mold him into the next Miami Heat superstar.

Herro is the kind of shooter that the Miami Heat hasn´t seen since…well, ever. His seven three-pointers during a 134-129 win against the Washington Wizards set a Heat rookie record for threes made in a single game. The 20-year-old even already had his first signature moment in the NBA when he made American Airlines Arena go bonkers after a dramatic game-winning shot against the hated Philadelphia 76ers.

He could have done so many things on that play. Drive to the rim at full speed, to begin with, since he would most likely have gotten fouled. He could have passed the ball to the trailing Jimmy Butler, who had gotten the steal and is the team´s veteran star closer after all. But no, he pulled back and shot from long distance with no worries in the world. Like 20,000 people at the AAA and millions more in their homes weren´t holding their collective breath.

His restart debut in Orlando only emphasized that growth, which went beyond his seven points in 20 minutes of action off the bench during Miami’s 125-105 rout of the depleted Denver Nuggets. Herro seemed at ease and already showcases new facets of his offensive repertoire as well.

People seem to think that his upside is a Devin Booker-type player, but his mentality is different. Booker is about his numbers, while Herro is about rising to the moment.

In other words, the kid has cojones. Then again, we are talking about a guy that was born in Wisconsin but made for South Beach with a penchant for luxury cars and Gucci purses.

FROM SNOW PLOWER TO SHOT CALLER

Herro grew up in Milwaukee, and naturally his first job was as a snow plower for his dad Chris.

Life in the suburbs of dairy land wasn´t exactly like the basketball showcase of nearby Chicago. Far from it, the most famous alumni at his local Whitnail High School were former Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Joel Stave (who was the school’s all-time winningest QB but also was waived by six different NFL teams without ever taking a single snap) and 1980 Playboy Playmate of the Month Jeana Keough.

In other words, the fast lane to basketball glory wasn´t at 5000 South 116th Street, Greenfield, Wisconsin. However, if you are talented, the recruiters will find you.

Herro averaged 32.9 points per game and took his school to the sectional semifinals as a senior phenom, hitting game winning shots against archrivals, having ridiculous nights with 45-point triple-doubles and having his classmates call Milwaukee “Tyler City” while making First Team All-State. It didn’t matter if he was snubbed for the McDonald’s All-American game, schools like Kansas and Villanova were already knocking at him, but his original intention was to stay at home with the Badgers, committing verbally as a junior in 2017.

That senior year changed everything, and a visit from Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari made him question what he thought was so clear as well. That was how Calipari convinced Herro that the Wildcats were “a better fit” for him.

That didn’t sit well in Wisconsin.

“A lot of people were calling me ‘snake’ and stuff like that,” Herro told the Kentucky Kernel in 2018.  “Different Wisconsin fans coming to my games, booing me and stuff like that.”

Herro arrived at Rupp Arena ready to fill the void left by current Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, one of five one-and-dones and six NBA-bound Wildcats and in 2018. Alexander averaged 14.4 points and took Kentucky to the Sweet 16, but Herro went a step further into the Elite Eight while also being second on the team averaging 14.0 points per contest and shooting 46.2% from the field, 35.5% from deep.

Calipari has seen many super talented prospects come and go during the past decade since he arrived at Kentucky in 2009, but he considers Herro one of his 10 all-time best clutch players and “bucket getters” (makes sense), and also one of his two best lockdown defenders. That’s curious, because Herro’s defense is actually one of the main things coaches, writers and fans emphasize as an area of improvement for the rookie in the NBA.

Herro started all four games for Kentucky during the NCAA Tournament, averaging 12.3 points and 3.5 assists…but his three-point percentage was a horrendous 18.8% (3-for-16), something to keep in mind for when the lights shine brightest in the NBA playoffs later this month.

His last game as a Wildcat was one to forget, as he scored just seven points going 3-for-11 from the field and 1-for-5 from deep in a 77-71 loss to fifth-seeded Auburn.

After the game, a dejected Herro sat in his locker fielding questions and said that “of course” that there was a chance he would be back in blue-and-white for a sophomore year.

However, the lure of being a potential lottery pick *https://nbadraftroom.com/p/2019-nba-mock-draft/) made him decide to turn pro instead.

DRAFT NIGHT DOUBTERS

And a lottery pick he was indeed, the last one actually, as Pat Riley picked him with the 14th  selection, just one spot after Kentucky top scorer P.J. Washington went to Charlotte,

In spite of that feel-good moment and Riley’s praise, the pick was met with a lot of skepticism in Miami, where the team was coming off a 39-43 season and resided in salary cap hell. Some fans booed the pick and Twitter didn’t hold back, as always.

Herro put in the work during the summer of 2019, and the second game of his NBA career was in Milwaukee. You would think his hometown would have been proud of him, but he got greeted by boos instead. Dwyane Wade, who also played college basketball in Milwaukee at Marquette and is the Heat’s all-time best player, came to his defense.

Herro didn’t care much, or at least he didn’t show it. His 14 points and five rebounds contributed to a thrilling 131-126 overtime win against the Eastern Conference’s best team, and that would be just the beginning of a fairytale season for both him and the team.

Let’s just say the bandwagon filled up quickly after that. “Old Ass Taintstick” is probably bragging about how he always loved Herro.

Herro injured his ankle in mid-February and the Heat went 7-9 in his absence during the following six weeks. His return would be short-lived, since it was during the final game before the pandemic against P.J. Washington’s Hornets.

Four months later, he is fully healed and better than ever, hoping to write a new chapter of his story as many experts are not so sure about the Heat’s chances to make it far in the playoffs. Then again, he already knows what to do with the doubters.

Coronavirus and Sports: Becoming Numb

/0 Comments/in , /by

I was going to write about Inter Miami, I really was. Maybe it would have been an upbeat preview about the “MLS Is Back” schedule reveal (Breakfast with Inter Miami vs. Chicago Fire at 9 a.m. on July 14, can you dig it?) or a more serious, ominous look at the league and its protocols as we are only 2 weeks away from the start of the first tournament in the United States after the pandemic.

But then I thought “AFTER the pandemic? We are barely during the pandemic, much less past it” and I discovered I’m sort of…detached? Nah, that’s not the word. I still follow the American sports landscape and want sports to be back. Shocked? That’s not it either, nothing that has happened the past three months has surprised me even a little, and that’s saying something. Numb? Yes, that’s it. I’m numb to the developments in the sports world nowadays, and I’m pretty sure other fans, writers and even players feel similarly.

I’m numb because I saw the news about 16 NBA players (the equivalent of an entire team’s roster, plus one) testing positive for COVID-19 and my reaction isn’t “Oh my, what if they backtrack and the season is cancelled?” It’s more like “I’m fine with whatever happens, I’m just waiting to see everyone freak out when a true superstar tests positive and [insert team here] has to play an entire series without him.”

I’m numb because “43 Division I teams have been eliminated in the last 12 weeks, and more than 130 programs have been cut across all NCAA levels”, and those kids weren’t earning millions of dollars, even as some of their coaches were and certainly their athletic departments are.

LOOKING FOR A SOLUTION

New Zealand is past the pandemic with tens of thousands gathering with joy to watch a rugby match most of them probably don’t remember the final score of. Europe is crowning champions as its cases are mostly going down (hello, Sweden, we see you) and fans celebrate the end of droughts in Liverpool and Naples as the ball keeps rolling with no apparent setbacks week after week.

Liverpool fans celebrate outside Anfield.

Even South America has soccer, but that’s because they don’t really give a shit in Brazil and they are bent on living like there is literally no tomorrow and they had the most new daily cases in the world on Thursday, June 25. Seems healthy.

Meanwhile, the United States of America is looking at itself in the mirror and wonders how it all went so wrong, so quickly after three months of sacrifices that were supposed to pave the way for sports to come back swiftly and smoothly.

We are Rachel and the Coronavirus is Ross asking: “OVER you? When were you UNDER me?” while we beat ourselves up wondering what went wrong and the President compares a deadly virus to the sniffles.

I’m numb because baseball is about to be back for a lightning round of games that promise to be exciting. Why am I not excited? I should be, with every game being three times as important and the potential of a repeat of that frantic 2011 finish of the regular season that gave every baseball fan a collective heart attack.

My heart rate is nowhere near skyrocketing, though. Some experts don’t even think the season will be able to finish.

I should be pumped to witness the start of the Tua era in Miami, but then I see that the Hall of Fame game between the Cowboys and the Steelers was cancelled and I’m bracing for what August and September might bring.

I’m even numb to the added crowd noise and the “virtual fans” we see at European soccer games. It’s background noise.

Maybe you read this and thought I spent 700 words being dramatic, and that’s ok. Maybe you will feel numb or jaded until 2021, and that’s ok too. Maybe this is just temporary, and everything feels a little alien after 100+ days of uncertainty and I will be all pumped up again in a couple of weeks when sports feel “real” again.

I will be waiting for that moment to come.

Tag Archive for: Five Reasons Sports

Super Bowl LIV

Five Reasons Super Bowl LIV Mashup

/0 Comments/in , /by

The Five Reasons Super Bowl LIV mashup brings you news and notes from all angles of the big game.

Super Bowl LIV in Miami was another huge win for the Magic City.

The eleventh Super Bowl played in Miami was one for the ages when the dust settled.

Perfect weather greeted fans at a Hard Rock Stadium venue equipped to the nines for the event.

A showcase of all that is good in Miami and the surrounding areas.

The action on the field was supplemented by a lot of interesting content off it.

Kansas City and San Francisco gave the 100th NFL season a worthy ending.

Fox broadcasted the game with  Joe Buck on commentary and Troy Aikman with analysis.

They went with a new graphics package for the broadcast which was underwhelming.

 

Erin Andrews covered the 49ers sideline with Chris Myers on the Kansas City side.

Fox had a nice pre-game show sponsored by YouTube, with Devi Lovato singing a powerful national anthem.

 

World War II veterans, each at least 100 years old, were on the field for the coin toss adding a nice patriotic element.

San Francisco won the toss and deferred to the second half.

A bold vote of confidence for their defense giving Patrick Mahomes first opportunity to make an impact.

It paid off as Mahomes threw two incompletions and the Chiefs went three-and-out.

San Francisco’s offense rewarded their defense as they quickly flipped field position thanks to the dynamic Deebo Samuel.

 

Kansas City’s defense tightened up when the 49ers hit the red zone, holding them to a field goal.

Robbie Gould opened the scoring to make it 3-0 with 7:57 left in the first quarter.

Joe and Troy are old reliable, if you have watched a NFC game on Fox they kind of just blend in.

Matriculating the broadcast along if you will.

Fox does a good job of keeping things moving with a lot of statistical nuggets in between plays.

Commercial Controversy

The first cringe moment of the broadcast came with a polarizing commercial, care of the Commander in Chief.

 

I’ll just leave that alone for now.

The spot for Marvel’s Black Widow though.

 

A tentative first quarter culminated with a Kansas City touchdown drive for a 7-3 Chiefs lead.

 

Mahomes settled down after a shaky opening stanza with a nice drive, feeding Travis Kelce along the way.

He took a big hit and that seemed to wake up his teammates on offense.

Any joy that was experienced by a Dolphins fan watching the action heat up quickly turned to nausea during the next commercial break.

 

The Hard Rock Hotel went all out in their second quarter ad.

 

Back on the field the play heated up as San Francisco put together their best drive of the game to that point.

 

Jimmy Garoppolo would respond after an interception on the previous drive to lead San Francisco to tie it up at 10 apiece.

 

Both teams found their rhythm offensively in a quickly moving second quarter. Few penalties were called overall in the first half and the game settled into a nice groove in the second 15 minutes.

At the two minute warning, things got a little emotional during the commercial break.

 

A game which many thought would be close was exactly that as the score would remain tied going into halftime.

#PepsiHalftime

 

 

Well folks, we have our meme from Super Bowl LIV.

 

Whether you are a fan of Shakira or Jennifer Lopez, they definitely brought the energy for Pepsi Halftime.

 

JJ liked it.

 

If you came here for in depth analysis of the Pepsi Halftime Show, you came to the right place.

 

 

 

49ers Seize Second Half

Deebo Samuel was the star of the first half for San Francisco and he picked up right where he left off after halftime.

The 49ers would take the second half kickoff and drive right into Kansas City territory, adding a field goal for a 13-10 lead.

 

San Francisco would seize momentum with authority in the third quarter, completely shutting down the Chiefs offense.

Patrick Mahomes looked rattled for much of the game and threw his second pick with the 49ers leading 20-10 halfway through the fourth.

It started to seem like San Francisco was on their way to their sixth Lombardi Trophy.

 

The 49ers defense seemed to have an answer every time the Chiefs would get any kind of momentum on offense.

Jimmy Garoppolo was outplaying Patrick Mahomes.

Read that again.

It was an unconventional game at times, and not the best played in terms of execution.

Mahomes Fights Back

Mahomes picked a bad time to have a lackluster game by his standards.

Yet he, nor his team, did not quit.

Mahomes finally picked it up as the fourth quarter rolled on.

First a 44-yard completion to Tyreek Hill for the longest play of the game.

 

Then Mahomes hit Travis Kelce for a touchdown and Kansas City trailed 20-17 with just over six minutes left.

The Chiefs defense would force their first three-and-out of the game to give Mahomes the ball back with a chance to tie it up.

Or perhaps win it.

 

Damian Williams got to score a meaningful touchdown in Miami.

(He wasn’t done).

Kansas took a 24-20 lead as Mahomes went 5-of-5 for 60 yards and that score on the drive.

Mahomes completely flipped the narrative on his performance in one possession.

Jimmy G would get a chance to lead the 49ers back, and just missed Emanuel Sanders on a third down bomb.

Kansas City’s defense would bring heavy pressure on fourth down and Frank Clark would sack Garoppolo.

With all three timeouts and over a minute left, there was still hope for the 49ers.

Until it was dashed.

 

The final score was 31-20 Kansas City, with the Chiefs scoring 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

Super Bowl LIV was an unbelievably exciting end to the NFL season, a showcase of two tremendously talented teams.

By all accounts, Hard Rock Stadium and the Miami area hit this one out of the park.

Stephen Ross and the Dolphins organization deserve tremendous credit.

Hopefully the 12th Super Bowl for Miami in the not-too-distant future will live up to this LIV.

 

Five Reasons doesn’t embarrass itself at media game

/0 Comments/in /by

We don’t watch well.

The Miami teams lose every time we hold a watch party.

But maybe we play better.

Five Reasons Sports and Miami Heat Beat each entered teams in the 2019 Miami Heat media challenge today at AmericanAirlines Arena. We had enough players — 14 — that we sacrificed David Friedman right after the birth of his boy Wade, giving him to CBS4 because they needed a player and we needed luxury tax savings.

Both teams started 2-0, with Chris Cochran (part-time producer of the Five Reasons flagship) anchoring the Five Reasons defense, and Alphonse Sidney and Giancarlo Navas being phased out of the Miami Heat Beat rotation.

But like the modern day Heat, both teams regressed to the mean right as they were set to clash in the semifinals, each losing its final two games and being eliminated.

Highlights?

You want highlights?!

You really don’t, but here are some:

Me doing my best Jax Show:

While also pulling my Coach Sko act:

And some more:

Scenes from a Miami Heat lottery party

/0 Comments/in /by

We didn’t win….

But we didn’t lose!

The Miami Heat had about the same chance to jump into the top 4 of Tuesday’s NBA Draft lottery as they did to drop from No. 13 to 14. And they didn’t do either. They stayed at No. 13. Which should count as a small victory for our beleaguered Five Reasons Sports Network.

But you won’t let us. So call it 0-10 for watch parties. Even so, we had a great time at Tap 42 in Midtown Miami, and will be back if they will have us. The Miami Heat Beat guys even recorded a rambling 55-minute podcast that I crashed.

You can find that here……

Here are some scenes from the party, as we filled up a back room with some overflow.