Michael Malone isn’t perspiring about the Miami Heat’s activation of Tyler Herro for the pivotal Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals.
Herro’s status from unavailable was changed by Miami to active ahead of the Monday bout. For the Denver Nuggets mentor, the flipping made by the Heat on Herro’s playing eligibility doesn’t change anything to them.
“To be honest, it doesn’t change anything. If they throw him out there, they throw him out there,” he said.
“Our approach is the same, our game plan is the same, and our urgency, discipline and communication has to be the same.”
Herro, who averaged 20.1 points in 67 regular season games this 2022-23, will officially make his comeback for Miami after missing eight weeks due to a broken right hand. He sustained the injury in the opener of their first-round playoff series against the Milwaukee Bucks and eventually underwent surgery to fix it.
Amid Herro’s absence throughout their run, the Heat blazed their way for a historic run by becoming just the second eighth-seeded club to reach the NBA Finals. With Miami now facing a daunting 3-1 series edge by the Denver Nuggets, his scoring output couldn’t be more important for them to try to push the series back to South Beach.
Game 5 tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET.
