Tyler Herro will reportedly undergo surgery on his left foot. ESPN’s Shams Charania has since noted that Herro is expected to miss at least eight weeks of playing time for the Miami Heat.
“Miami Heat All-Star Tyler Herro is undergoing surgery on his left foot and will be sidelined to begin the 2025-26 season, sources tell ESPN,” Charania reported. “…Expected timetable for Heat’s Tyler Herro after ankle/foot surgery: 8 weeks, sources said.”
Losing Herro this close to the start of the new season is a tough blow for Erik Spoelstra’s team. He is their primary ball-handler, playmaker and offensive option. Without him in the rotation, Spoelstra may be forced to lean on rookie ball-handler Kasparas Jakucionis for playmaking. Newcomer Norman Powell will likely be asked to step up as the lead scorer on the roster.
Herro played in 77 games for the Heat last season. He averaged 23.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists, shooting 47.2% from the field and 37.5% from three-point range. Once cleared to play, Herro will then need to ramp back up to NBA-level fitness. By missing training camp and preseason, his conditioning will undoubtedly be an issue when he returns to the court.
Nevertheless, Miami can be pleased that its lead guard will be firmly in the rotation before we hit the midway point of the season. Therefore, any hopes of a playoff push should still be intact.
Andrew Wiggins Could Be Trade Deadline Mover
While the Heat will be forced to compete without Herro during the opening months of the season, Pat Riley will also need to make a decision over Andrew Wiggins‘ tenure with the franchise. The 2022 NBA champion has been rumored to be a target for the Los Angeles Lakers in recent weeks.
In a recent article from ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel, Wiggins was tabbed as a frontrunner to be moved on, around or before the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
“In recent years, instead of waiting until the offseason to do so, teams have taken the initiative to go all-in at the trade deadline,” Siegel wrote. “We are expecting much of the same to happen before February during the 2025-26 season. …Immediately, the trade market points in the direction of three key names: Andrew Wiggins, RJ Barrett, and Jonathan Kuminga.”
If made available, Kuminga could undoubtedly draw interest from multiple teams around the NBA. His three-and-d skill set is interchangeable among countless offensive and defensive systems.
Heat Have High Price Tag on Wiggins
According to Lakers insider Anthony Irwin of ClutchPoints, the Heat’s high asking price has stalled trade discussions for Wiggins.
“One story and the one that I heard more directly, was that the Miami Heat were asking for Rui Hachimura,” Irwin said on his podcast, The Lakers Lounge. “They were asking for a first-round pick. They were asking for Gabe Vincent, whom they like, and potentially also Dalton Knecht. The Lakers, I think, would be fine moving on from Dalton for Wiggins. They would obviously also be fine moving on from Gabe Vincent for Andrew Wiggins.”
Irwin continued.
“And I also think they would probably be mostly fine moving off of Rui Hachimura for Andrew Wiggins. They definitely did not want to include Rui and the one first-round pick that they can move this season. And so that was where again I heard directly that those talks kind of broke down.”
Now that Herro has been ruled out for the next few months, it will be interesting to see whether that spurs Riley into making a move, especially if a guard is part of the returning package.
Of course, he has until the February 5 trade deadline, so only time will tell how things shake out.
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