Tyler Herro On How Cavs Are Defending Him: "It's Really Not A Good Defense To Play"

One day from the Miami Heat's third elimination game in two weeks, All-Star Tyler Herro shared some bold takes at practice about the aggressive way that the Cleveland Cavaliers are defending him.

"I mean, everyone's seen it, face-guard, forcing everything down into like the paint area, right when the ball goes through the net, they're picking me up." Herro said. "But, I like it. I like it a lot actually."

The Cavaliers opted to top-lock Herro, where a defender denies the player off the ball. Herro elaborated on what he likes about it since every defensive coverage has its own pros and cons. He was asked if there are ways to take advantage of the way he's being defended.

"Yeah, that's why I like it. It's really not a good defense to play, as long as we can expose it, and which we can, there's ways to do it." Herro said. "That's what we've kind of worked on today and just figuring out different ways to kind of loosen up their defense a little bit, but also understanding what they're doing and how we can expose that without really doing too much."

Tyler Herro on the Cavs’ defense:

“I like it. I like it a lot actually. It’s not a good defense to play. As long as we can expose it…There are ways to do it”
— 𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙉𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 (@HeatvsHaters) April 27, 2025

Herro, now averaging 22.3 points on 47 percent shooting, 4.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in the series explained some of the nuances of him bringing up the ball vs. playing off-ball. When adjusting to the Cavs' strategy, considered to be a sign of respect, he emphasized the importance of making the proper reads.

"Sometimes bringing it up will be beneficial for us so that I get the ball wiith more time on the shot clock opposed to catching it with five seconds on the shot clock after I already worked ten seconds to try to get open," Herro said. "And then some of it too is going to be just me making the right play. This series, obviously they're trying to shut off my scoring, so trying to make plays for my teammates and just being okay with that. Yeah, it's a great sign of respect, but I'm not really looking for too much respect right now. I'm just trying to win a game."

Tyler Herro On How Cavs Are Defending Him: "It's Really Not A Good Defense To Play"

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