Miami Heat head coach suggests Tyler Herro's neck injury worsened because of NBA rules

(Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

The 2020-21 NBA season has been anything but ordinary thus far, and now the reality of the situation is becoming clear for some franchises.

Miami Heat second-year guard Tyler Herro was the surprise star of the Orlando bubble as a rookie and had high expectations coming into the new season. Through 10 games this year–all as a starter–Herro has averaged 17.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game. He’d been doing this playing mostly out of position and without his superstar teammates, Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler. However, Herro’s sat out the previous three contests for Miami due to neck spasms and could be out even longer.

Tyler Herro (neck) again out for Heat, also to miss next two in Brooklyn. https://t.co/bUzSb82iBW Jimmy Butler, Avery Bradley yet to resume court activity. pic.twitter.com/fj0Nb0E8N5

— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) January 22, 2021

Earlier this season on Jan. 12, the Heat was forced to run with just eight players in a matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers due to positive COVID-19 tests and contact tracing within the Miami organization. As a result, Herro, who had already been bearing a large bulk of the backcourt minutes, was now playing 30-plus minutes on a regular basis on a roster where there were moments when he was the best player in a Heat uniform. Miami lost both games they played against Philly with just eight men availabe.

Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra believes that Herro’s additional workload played a role in his current neck injury. Had he not played, the Heat would not have had the required number of players and would have been forced to forfeit.