Tyler Herro has become a fourth-quarter assassin for the Miami Heat
Not only is Tyler Herro the NBA’s leading bench scorer and among the NBA’s most improved players, he is developing another specialty: fourth-quarter assassin.
The former Kentucky star’s 88 points in the fourth quarter for the Miami Heat rank third in the NBA, behind only DeMar DeRozan (105) and Cole Anthony (89).
His 6.3 points per game in the fourth rank fifth among all players (minimum 10 games).
What’s more, Herro is shooting 50.8 percent from the field in the fourth and 13 for 26 on threes.
Carmelo Anthony and CJ McCollum are the only NBA players who have made as many fourth-quarter threes as Herro with a higher shooting percentage.
Herro’s 33 field goals in the fourth quarter are behind only DeRozan’s 40.
His 139 fourth-quarter minutes are second most, behind Charlotte’s Miles Bridges.
Last season, Herro was 64th in fourth-quarter points with 218, but he shot just 40.4 percent and 32.3 percent on threes (30 for 93).
So the improvement in that part of his game — like in several other areas — has been dramatic.
Herro has displayed a knack for making difficult shots all season.
Erik Spoelstra isn’t surprised.
“Yes [it would surprise me] if I hadn’t seen him so often in our workouts, in practices and his summer development. If I hadn’t seen all of that, then maybe you would look at some of these plays and say, ‘Well, what else is available?’” Spoelstra said.
“But I’ve seen him make and work on those shots hour after hour. And he’s improved his playmaking ability as well because most teams now are not just letting him come off freely on pick-and-rolls. They’re either switching or jump switching, or trapping him and his passing and hitting the open guy has really improved. But those traps and jump switches are born out of respect because of his shot making ability, and he’s earned that.”
Herro’s shooting percentage has jumped from 43.9 percent last season to 46.1 and three-point shooting from 36.0 to 39.4. His points per game are up from 15.1 to 21.9.
