Herro makes case for defense, only to be overshadowed

MIAMI — The play before the play is easy to overlook considering the disheartening outcome.

But before Julius Randle’s desperation fadeaway 3-pointer that gave the Knicks their final-seconds 122-120 victory Friday night at Miami-Dade Arena, Tyler Herro made the type of play that otherwise would have been the story of the night.

With 29 seconds remaining, after he had converted a pair of free throws that pulled the Heat within 119-118, Herro not only came up with a steal against Randle, but then six seconds later scored on a dramatic driving layup that put the Heat up one with 23.1 seconds left and the Knicks out of timeouts. Then Randle happened.

And that, coach Erik Spoelstra said was particularly disappointing because Herro had stepped up with the very type of defensive play that showed the evolution in his game at such moments.

“He’s gotten a lot better, significantly better,” Spoelstra said of such late-game moments when Herro has been particularly targeted. “And he’s getting so many reps at it, that it’s not going to be the same coverage. I’m not getting into details because I don’t want all the nuances [revealed].

“But he’s becoming Steph Currylike defensively in terms of when teams try to bring you up and just create an advantage. It’s not the easiest thing anymore.”

The Heat typically have shielded Herro with offense-defense switches in such situations when possible. But with Kyle Lowry sidelined by the ongoing knee issues that meant another lost night Saturday against the visiting Atlanta Hawks, and with Gabe Vincent struggling, there wasn’t much of a Plan B Friday night.

So Herro embraced and seized his moment, with what would have been the play of the game if not for Randle’s play of the game.

“That’s what my coaches and teammates want out of me, just to compete on that end of the floor,” Herro said. “I’m not going to be a lockdown defender, I don’t think, at anypointinmycareer.Buttobeable tojustgooutthereandcompeteand give everything I had, that’s all they ask of me and that’s all I can do.

“I just try to go out there and some nights look better than others, but just trying to stay focused on the main thing, and that’s competing hard on that end.”

Yurtseven’s debut

Idle since the preseason and sidelined since November ankle surgery, second-year Heat center Omer Yurtseven made his season debut on Friday night with the G League Sioux Falls Skyforce, closing with 27 points on 9-of-19 shooting, 10 rebounds and five assists in 37:12.

The effort came in a 131-128 home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves’ affiliate, the Iowa Wolves, a game that also featured a 27-point performance by Heat two-way forward Jamal Cain, who shot 12 of 16 from the field.

Lining it up

In closing 18 of 20 from the foul line in Friday night’s loss to the Knicks, Jimmy Butler made it nine career games with at least 20 free throws, doing it for the third time this season.

Butler drew 12 fouls against the Knicks, one off of the career-high 13 fouls he drew against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Jan. 10.

Still hurting

Butler again was listed as questionable due to knee soreness ahead of Saturday night’s game, as was the case before he played Friday night. Butler spent the end of Wednesday night’s home loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the locker room taking treatment on his knee.

The rest of the Heat injury report for Saturday’s game was those players previously listed as out: Lowry, Yurtseven, Nikola Jovic (back) and Cain (G League assignment).

Tyler Herro doesn’t often draw notice for his defense, but the Heat guard came up with this late-game play on Friday night against the Knicks’ Julius Randle that earned immediate respect.