Tyler Herro wins Sixth Man of Year award

In a surprise to no one, Tyler Herro won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award. He received 96 of 100 first-place votes; Kevin Love — the rightful winner according to John Hollinger — had three first-place votes, while Cam Johnson had one.

This award marks a nice turnaround from Herro’s uneven sophomore year. The Miami Heat’s 2019 first-round pick started the 2020-21 season in the starting lineup as the point guard. But he lost the spot to Kendrick Nunn. Last June, Ethan J. Skolnick of the 5 Reasons Sports network said that there was a 75 percent chance Herro would get traded.

But the Heat traded for Kyle Lowry over the summer without giving up Herro, something Miami couldn’t do at the trade deadline. And during a season that saw Bam Adebayo need early-season wrist surgery, Lowry miss time for personal reasons and Jimmy Butler suffer nagging injuries along the way, Herro helped the Heat remain at the top of the Eastern Conference. Kendrick Perkins even said Herro should’ve been Miami’s representative at the All-Star Game.

And while Herro struggled in Miami’s first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks, he bounced back in Game 1 of the second round against the Philadelphia 76ers last night.