Tyler Herro is in the midst of an outstanding season and he’s crediting at least some of it to understanding Stephen Curry’s game.
Averaging 24.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists while shooting 41.3 percent from beyond the arc on over 10 attempts per game (!), Herro revealed in an NBA feature story that his physical prototype made trying to follow in Curry’s footsteps a no-brainer.
“I feel like with my body type and the way I play, it’s like Steph Curry,” Herro said. “I try to make my shot profile as identical to Steph as possible. Steph shoots a lot of threes obviously, the rest of them are to the rim, layups and free throws. That’s kind of what I’m trying to resemble is literally what Steph’s doing.”
Is Herro Really Playing Like Curry?
Per Cleaning the Glass, 55 percent of Herro’s field goal attempts this season are threes and 22 percent are within four feet of the basket. 58 percent of Curry’s field goal attempts this season are threes and 18 percent of his shots come at the rim. Herro’s layups, pull-up threes and free-throws are all at a career-high.
“In the first three quarters, I don’t even think about shooting [from midrange] honestly,” Herro says. “I just try to get to my ****, which is layups and threes.”
Part of arriving at this conclusion was also recognizing what he’s not. Herro noted the players who are highly effective from the midrange are big wings in the 6-foot-7 and higher range, the Kevin Durants, Jimmy Butlers and Kawhi Leonards of the world.
Film Work Making A Difference
Herro spent time this summer with Miami Heat assistant coach Chris Quinn watching plenty of Curry film, including from the Paris Olympics. They noted how Curry could go an entire half with only attempting threes. He also saw similarities in how he could play off Bam Adebayo with how Curry plays off Draymond Green.
“Obviously Steph’s probably the greatest shooter of all time and does it in a variety of ways,” Quinn said. “He’s not just a spot-up guy, he’s not just an off-the-dribble guy, he’s not just a movement guy, he can make those threes in all different ways, which is something Tyler can do too.”
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Regardless of what happens with Jimmy Butler, it’s safe to say the Heat offense now flows through Herro. Perhaps that’s part of why Miami is even open to hearing offers for Butler in the first place.
Whatever comes next, it appears Herro is ready for it.
