Q: Are the Heat and/or Tyler Herro better off as him as the primary ballhandler or him as the wing/scorer?– Kris, Oceanside, Calif.
A: This is almost a next-gen question. For now, Kyle Lowry remains in place, and unless that contract is offloaded, he remains under contract through next season. But considering how difficult it is to get a true point guard, there could be something to be said about considering a shift of Tyler to the point, considering how much he already has the ball in his hands and how well he has functioned in the pick-and-roll game. The concern is then finding someone to defend elite opposing point guards, which is not exactly Tyler’s forte. That basically could make Tyler most effective working alongside a combo guard. More immediately, it would be interesting to see the approach if Kyle is utilized in a trade and the opportunity becomes more immediate to play Tyler at the point. It certainly seems to be trending that way.
Q: When you look at all we had at center, we need a backup center, don’t we? – Monty.
A: For the playoffs? Yes. At the moment, Orlando Robinson has been trending well enough. The problem is that the way the roster is structured, it is not as if the Heat can shift their starting power forward to center, as they have done in recent seasons, even last year with P.J. Tucker. That simply is not who Caleb Martin is. If Omer Yurtseven can’t make it all the way back, and if the Heat do make what appears an inevitable move away from Dewayne Dedmon, it would seem as if a veteran big man would become a necessity in advance of the postseason.
Q: Let’s beat someone good before we talk about a Heat revival. – Tony.
A: This was in response to the Heat beating a Celtics team lacking Jaylen Brown, Al Horford and Marcus Smart, after twice beating the Bucks when they lacked Giannis Antetokounmpo. Look, you play who you get. But if you are looking for victories particularly meaningful in the standings, then look at next week’s games in Cleveland, New York and Milwaukee.
