@miamiheat/Twitter Miami Heat coaches and players discuss the controversy that surrounds guard Tyler Herro on media day.
Tyler Herro was a full participant in Thursday’s practice as he gears up for a return to action. The Miami Heat didn’t list Herro on the NBA’s most recent injury report, a clear indication the sharpshooting guard will play on Friday against New York.
Herro has been battling a nagging knee injury that kept him out of four of the team’s final five games before the All-Star break. The 22-year-old suffered soreness in his right knee after a scary collision on February 5. There was no structural damage, though.
The Heat’s “offensive punch” off the bench, according to Erik Spoelstra, was kept out more for precautionary reasons. Now he appears set to return to the rotation, with several fans reading into his latest Twitter post. Herro wrote: “I caught the vibe y’all giving off and I’m tryna make my self less like it.”
Herro’s supporters – he has 334.4K followers – flocked to social media to try and interpret the cryptic post. The most common thought being that he’s about to deliver an epic performance versus the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. And shut up all his haters.
@raf_tyler Heat Nation gonna take over the Garden tomorrow night “Let’s Go Heat”
@raf_tyler @jackharlow They sleep on you this season but you snapping🦍⬆️ t.co/Uz4CXsJJAE
Herro was actually quoting a verse from rising star rapper Jack Harlow off his new track “Nail Tech” which dropped on February 18. The Kentucky native struck up a friendship with the Heat star following his song and music video titled “Tyler Herro.” Here is the full verse (via Rap Genius):
Most of y’all ain’t wealthy (Nope), most of y’all just dress like it
I caught the vibe that y’all givin’ off, and I’m tryna make myself less like it
This chick got a lil’ Porsche body, I might let the bro test drive it
It’s hard for me to get excited, I love music, and stress ’bout it
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Harlow and Herro in ‘Regular Contact’
Herro briefly described his relationship with Harlow prior to the All-Star break during an interview with Shaun Powell of NBA Media. The song was inspired by Herro’s strong play in the Orlando bubble, even though it isn’t really about the 2019 first-rounder at all.
Harlow only mentions Herro by name once on the track when he talks about enlisting him to fix his own broken jumper. So, did Harlow get on the court with Herro?
“We worked on a little basketball here and there,” Herro told Powell. “He pulled up to a workout and, well, yeah, that’s about it. We’re in regular contact, and we motivate each other.”
Heat Favorites to Win Eastern Conference?
Miami entered the All-Star break with the best record in the Eastern Conference. They owned the tiebreaker over Chicago at the time and now trail them by half a game following the Bulls’ 112-108 on Thursday night. No worries, the Heat are still gaining momentum as the favorites to win the East. The Ringer’s Dan Devine referred to them as “sleeping giants” while pointing out they had a 72-percent chance of winning the East. However, those odds dip down to 8-percent when talking about taking home the NBA title.
Feb 24.22
UPDATE – #NBA Eastern Conference Standings
1. Bulls – 39 W / 21 L
2. Heat – 38 W / 21 L
3. 76ers – 35 W / 23 L
4. Bucks – 36 W / 24 L
5. Cavaliers – 35 W / 24 L
6. Celtics – 35 W / 26 L