ASK IRA: How does Tyler Herro’s All-Rookie snub look now?
Q: Did someone show Tyler Herro that he was snubbed for first-team All-Rookie? -- Thomas.
A: Not sure snub is the correct phrasing, considering the time Tyler Herro missed during the regular season. But you nonetheless might have a point, considering the NBA did not allow the seeding games to be part of the process. Factor those into the equation and I don’t see how he would not have picked up the extra vote needed to move onto the first team. Those regular-season games at Disney counted in the standings, counted in Tyler’s regular-season stats, so why shouldn’t they have counted in balloting for All-Rookie? Recount!
Q: Hey Ira, the Gordon Hayward snub needs to be addressed. I sure hope he plays and that we can shut him down. -- Adrian, Pembroke Pines.
A: Hmm, sense a theme here today. I’m not sure that “snub” is the correct word choice. Gordon Hayward was a free agent in the 2017 offseason, interviewed with the Heat, Celtics and Jazz, and then made the decision to join his college coach, Brad Stevens, in Boston. That’s what free agency is all about. It was not a case of playing teams against one another, with all offering the maximum. It’s like when some point to how Kevin Durant “snubbed” the Heat in the 2016 offseason by choosing the Warriors over the Heat. As Hayward wrote in The Players' Tribune in July 2017, “My meetings with all three teams during this process -- Miami, Boston and Utah -- were just unbelievable. They couldn’t have been more impressive. Each meeting left me convinced that the team I’d just met with was the right fit.” Putting all of that aside, you could see how much Hayward could have helped the Celtics on Tuesday night, with his ability to hit shots when Boston went through its droughts.
Q: Can the Heat play any better than Game 1? -- Flip.
A: Sure. It hardly was the best of Duncan Robinson, and there was precious little from the bench beyond Tyler Herro. Plus, as mentioned above, if the Celtics get Gordon Hayward back at some point, then the Heat are going to have to find a way to offset that boost.
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