Despite the up-and-down nature of their regular season and play-in experience, the Miami Heat have garnered considerable mention as a darkhorse threat to make some playoff noise in the Eastern Conference. And the team definitely lived up to that billing on Sunday night.
Tipping off their first-round series against two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and the first-seeded Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum, Jimmy Butler and Co. managed to steal a Game 1 win in blowout fashion, 130-117.
As sweet as the upset was, though, the Heat also incurred an injury with the potential to crush any hope they had of disrupting the bracket with a series victory.
Tyler Herro, who averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists while draining nearly 38% of his triples this season, suffered a broken hand during the contest. And his prognosis doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in an extended postseason run.
Report: Heat’s Tyler Herro Expected to Be Out for Several Weeks After Breaking Hand in Game 1 vs Bucks
Per a report from Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, Herro broke both the middle and ring fingers on his shooting hand. Consequently, the former Sixth Man of the Year is expected to be out of commission for four to six weeks.
The injury occurred with just under a minute remaining in the third quarter. As Bucks guard Grayson Allen received a hand-off from Brook Lopez and then attempted to shake Herro with a dribble move above the break, the ball was knocked loose and sent rolling into the backcourt.
Herro dove to the hardwood in hopes of stealing the possession away from Allen and the Bucks, but he crashed awkwardly on his hand as his body hit the court. The 23-year-old attempted to play through the pain after suffering the injury, but the decision was made to pull him at halftime.
The Heat star finished the contest with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting in 19 minutes of action.
“You can’t fully make up what Tyler has been for our team all year long, but guys got to step up, including myself, including Bam [Adebayo] and whoever [head coach Erik Spoelstra] calls upon to do an offensive assignment, a defensive assignment, to bring some energy, to dive on the floor, get a loose ball or rebound,” Butler remarked during his postgame media availability.
“It’s like all hands on deck at all times, now more than ever.”
Heat Reach a Higher Level From the Perimeter During Win
While Miami’s defense fell off down the stretch of the regular season, the team’s inability to take and make three-point shots consistently may have been the biggest factor in its overall underperformance throughout the campaign. During Game 1 against the Bucks, though, the Heat captured lightning in a bottle from deep.
Although the attempts were still down, Coach Spo’s crew managed to drill 15 of their 25 tries from behind the arc for a 60% completion rate in the contest. That’s the highest three-point percentage the club has managed in any of the 85 regular-season, play-in and playoff games it has logged in 2022-23.
For their part, Kevin Love and Gabe Vincent led the way with four triples apiece. Herro had contributed two long-range bombs before suffering his injury.
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Heat Receive Brutal Tyler Herro Injury News Following Upset of Giannis, Bucks