The Miami Heat weren’t able to trade for former Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard, as Portland traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Trail Blazers were reportedly not interested in receiving Heat guard Tyler Herro in a trade package for Lillard.
But Herro recently said that he’s glad that the Trail Blazers didn’t want to trade for him.
“I didn’t want to go to Portland, so I’m glad Portland didn’t want me,” Herro told the Sun Sentinel. “I just don’t want to be in Portland. So it’s not personal with Portland, at all.
“I’m just happy to be on the court. I haven’t played since April. I broke my hand and I haven’t played since then, so I’m ready to play.”
The 23-year-old guard then went on to say that he doesn’t view this upcoming season as a revenge tour after his name was in trade rumors for much of the summer.
“I don’t think it’s a revenge tour at all,” he said. “It’s just a regular season. I’m just motivated to come back. I haven’t played in a while, so I’m just excited to be back.”
Herro was selected with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft following a one-season stint playing college basketball at the University of Kentucky. He averaged 14.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field across 37 games played with the Wildcats during the 2018-19 season.
The shooting guard has played four seasons in the NBA, all as a member of the storied Heat franchise. Herro averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game across 67 appearances with Miami during the 2022-23 regular season. He also shot the ball with impressive accuracy from behind the three-point arc during the regular season, seeing as how he converted 37.8 percent of his three-point attempts.
Unfortunately for Heat fans, though, a hand injury prevented Herro from carrying over his excellent play from the 2022-23 regular season into the 2023 playoffs. He broke his hand in the second quarter of Game 1 of Miami’s first-round series against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks and was sidelined for the remainder of the Heat’s NBA Finals run.
Hopefully, Herro’s hand injury will not impact his ability to shoot the ball accurately when the 2023-24 regular season tips off later this month. The Heat will begin their regular season against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 25.