Tyler Herro didn’t start it with Darius Garland, but he is definitely looking to end it.
The Cleveland Cavaliers star Garland made some shady comments about his Miami Heat counterpart Herro this week in the middle of their first-round playoff series. After beating the Heat 121-112 in Game 2 on Wednesday, Garland was asked what the key was to having continued success against Miami.
“Pick on Tyler Herro,” Garland replied.
Speaking with reporters on Friday, Herro fired back at Garland’s shade.
“Somebody who doesn’t play defense shouldn’t be talking either,” Herro said. “He don’t play any defense, and we’ll see that tomorrow [in Game 3]. He don’t play no D.”
Herro, in large part due to the burden that he is asked to carry for Miami offensively, is indeed known as a below-average defender. But he has a tendency to get deflections and play passing lanes well, which is just enough for a Heat team that features strong defenders at the other four positions on the floor.
Garland is also pretty similar in that he is a score-first, defense-optional player who has the luxury of funneling his defensive assignments into the back line (led by newly-minted Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley and ex-All-Star shot-blocker Jarrett Allen). In truth, neither player here should be shading the other one for his defense.
As for the offensive side of the ball, Herro has won the battle there so far, averaging 27.0 points per game in the series to Garland’s 24.0. But it is the Cavaliers who are currently nursing the 2-0 advantage with Garland now becoming the latest NBA opponent to have beef with the former Sixth Man of the Year winner Herro.
