MIAMI – As Miami Heat star Tyler Herro was upgraded on the injury report for Sunday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans, there is a huge catch that comes with him being available. With the Heat looking to change its outlook after Saturday's loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the situation around Herro is no doubt a strange one, as head coach Erik Spoelstra explains the plan with his injury.
Herro has missed the last 10 games and 12 of the 13 with a right big toe contusion, which doesn't even count the first 17 contests he was absent for to start the season, having only played in six outings so far. However, he was upgraded to “questionable” on Sunday afternoon, with the hope that he could make a return, but it will be a bit longer before he comes back.
ClutchPoints learned that Herro will be listed as “available” for Sunday's game against the Pelicans and be in uniform, but he is not expected to play as part of his “ramp-up process.” Spoelstra would give a bit more insight, telling ClutchPoints that “he's getting closer.”
“Well, he's putting in a lot of work. He's getting closer,” Spoelstra said. “This is just more to get the mindset, you know, ready for the next step. He'll be traveling with us, but, you know, he's still day to day. I don't have an exact date on when he'll be ready.”
Asked Erik Spoelstra about Tyler Herro being available tonight, but not expected to play.
“Well he’s putting in a lot of work, he’s getting closer….He’ll be traveling with us, but he’s still day to day, I don’t have an exact date on when he’ll be ready…” #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/MTCpBE0AJk
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) January 4, 2026
As Spoelstra said, Herro will travel with Miami for the four-game road trip that will take place after the Pelicans game, which is a good sign for the 25-year old. In the six games played, he averaged 23.2 points, five rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 50.5 percent from the field and 40.5 percent from deep.
Heat's Erik Spoelstra on the emphasis of sticking to identity
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra yells to his team from in front of the scorer’s table during their game against the Detroit Pistons in the second quarter at Little Caesars Arena.
Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
Article Continues Below
Other injuries for the Heat consist of Sixth Man of the Year candidate Jaime Jaquez Jr., who will miss Sunday's game with an ankle sprain. However, despite the intriguing plan for Herro, it does seem it's a positive step in the right direction, as Miami could use another offensive gutpunch, especially after the disappointing loss to Minnesota.
Spoelstra would see progress from the game, despite the defeat, telling ClutchPoints that the team “checked some boxes.”
“We played really hard last night,” Spoelstra said. “So from a compete standpoint, we checked some boxes there. There was a lot of things going on during the course of the game. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, when they made their run, we didn't respond to that one. And you also have to play well; that's sometimes the case. You know, they play better than us, but I thought we competed hard and well enough to put ourselves in a position to win if we have some better things going for us, you know, definitely felt the lack of or missing some of the paint attacks that Jaime can create.”
“But other guys stepped up, and I thought there were some really good things, you know, from other guys,” Spoelstra continued. “[Having] that similar type of compete level, and then bring a more efficient game on both sides of the court, where we're getting to our identity more consistently, not letting teams take us out of that identity, impacting the game, getting it on our terms. And we know how important this game is before we go on the road.”
Asked Erik Spoelstra about what he wants to see cleaned up from last night’s L to Minnesota.
“We played really hard last night, so from a compete standpoint, we checked some boxes there…we know how important this game is before we go on the road…”
Full response: #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/P3K6rJw6hi
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) January 4, 2026
At any rate, Miami is 19-16 before Sunday's game, and after, the team embarks on a four-game Midwest road trip, starting next Tuesday against the Timberwolves.