Cavs: 3 players to watch in second 2019-20 meeting with Heat

Tyler Herro

Miami guard Tyler Herro has had a splendid start to his rookie season, as he’s currently putting up 13.3 points per game off the bench, and is shooting 37.5% from three-point range.

Herro is definitely not just a catch-and-shoot player, though, as he can get to his spots on the floor very well curling around screens from Adebayo, Kelly Olynyk and others, and can occasionally throw it down, too.

Anyway, Herro (pun intended), torched the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first meeting between the two teams in 2019-20.

As noted by ESPN, Herro had 16 points off the bench his first time playing the Cavaliers, and did so on 57.1% shooting. That included him hitting two-of-four three-pointers, and he had a plus-nine plus-minus as well.

Similarly to Butler as a player who can get in rhythm as a dynamic scorer from seeing easy looks go in, Herro is a player that the Cavs can absolutely not allow to get to the foul line. He shot a perfect six-of-six from the charity stripe in the first meeting between the two clubs.

It’s going to be a tall order for the likes of Sexton, or Jordan Clarkson when it comes to staying right near Herro, who moves without the ball very well, and can hit some drop passes and occasionally throw up lobs when operating out of the pick-and-roll or from hand-off deliveries, too.

If the Cavs are going to be more competitive than they were on Thursday, the Wine and Gold have to keep Herro from getting too many clean looks, because when he has it going, it seems to give Miami energy.

That also makes them even more even potent offensively on the perimeter, with the likes of Butler and Nunn as the two key cogs already, who are always going to get theirs against a young team like the Cavaliers, anyhow.

At home, that’s probably even more so the case in terms of Herro giving the Heat energy, too. So again, the Cavs will need to be closing out hard to Herro, and I’d prefer them to be physical with him off-ball.

He can’t get too many free releases via off-ball screens in this one, and the Cleveland bigs, such as Nance, which it’s unclear if he can go due to his thumb being banged up, or Zizic, need to deter passes going to Herro off curls and back cuts, too.