Herro has been looking forward to Monday’s Heat-Bucks game. Also, the latest on Heat’s injuries

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro always looks forward to returning to his hometown of Milwaukee during the NBA season.

Herro, 23, grew up in a suburb of Milwaukee about 15 minutes away from Fiserv Forum. He has already played in nine games against the Bucks in Milwaukee during his first four NBA seasons.

But Herro’s 10th career game in Milwaukee will be different than the rest and he knows it, when the Heat closes its three-game trip on Monday against the Bucks at Fiserv Forum (8 p.m., Bally Sports Sun). The Heat (1-2) will try to avoid a winless trip after losing the first two games.

Short-handed Heat blown out by Timberwolves to fall to 0-2 on trip. Takeaways from the loss

“Definitely excited,” Herro said with a grin as he cleaned out his locker at Target Center late Saturday night following the Heat’s 106-90 loss to the Minnesota Timberwoves. “Any time I can play at home in front of my family and my friends is always fun. You know, it’s definitely been in the back of my mind for a couple different reasons. It will be a good game to bounce back after tonight, so I’m excited for it.”

Herro only hinted at the reasons that make Monday’s game in Milwaukee stand out, but one could imagine that Damian Lillard is near the top of the list.

With Lillard requesting a trade to the Heat this past summer, Herro was at the center of nearly every hypothetical Heat offer for Lillard. Herro spent most of the summer involved in Lillard trade speculation and there were times over the past few months that Herro actually believed he was going to be moved in a Lillard deal.

Instead, the Bucks acquired Lillard in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers last month. Monday’s contest between the Heat and Bucks will be Herro’s first matchup against Lillard since this summer’s trade saga.

Then there’s the fact that Herro broke his right hand in the last game he played at Fiserv Forum, when he dove for a loose ball on April 16 in Game 1 of the Heat’s first-round playoff series against the Bucks. Herro missed the rest of the Heat’s deep playoff run that ended with a loss in the NBA Finals.

Through the first three games of this regular season, Herro is the Heat’s second-leading scorer behind center Bam Adebayo but he’s been inefficient. Herro is averaging 22 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 37.3 percent from the field and 37.9 percent from three-point range to start this season.

“Of course,” Herro said if he feels added motivation entering Monday’s game in Milwaukee. “Every game is another opportunity to prove ourselves, prove myself. You see, obviously, the reasons that are on my mind. I’m just excited to be back in Milwaukee and playing.”

But as a Milwaukee native, Herro can also appreciate what the Bucks’ superstar duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Lillard mean for his hometown.

“One thing is to have Giannis. Obviously, he’s a superstar,” Herro said. “And then having another superstar like Dame. Milwaukee is a small city that loves basketball. So any time the Bucks are winning and have a talented roster like that is always good for the city.”

The Heat and Bucks have their own rivalry going on, as the two teams have met in the playoffs in three of the last four seasons. Miami has won two of those series, including last season when the eighth-seeded Heat upset the top-seeded Bucks 4-1 in the first round of the playoffs.

But Herro insists there’s no personal rivalry with Lillard, just respect.

“I’ve never spoken to him,” Herro said when asked if he heard from Lillard throughout the trade conversations. “I probably won’t [talk to him on Monday]. We’ll see what happens. I respect his game, for sure. There’s no hate toward him at all. He’s a great player. I’ve been watching him my whole life. So I’m excited to continue to compete against the best.”

YOUTH MOVEMENT

With the short-handed Heat missing five players, coach Erik Spoelstra started rookie wing Jaime Jaquez Jr. and second-year forward Nikola Jovic in Saturday’s loss to the Timberwolves.

It marked Jaquez’s first NBA start. For Jovic, it not only marked his first start of this season and ninth start of his NBA career, but also his first action of this regular season after receiving DNP-CDs (did not play, coach’s decision) in each of the first two games.

“We’re young, both of us,” Jovic, 20, said. “We have a lot to learn. And I think Spo for sure is going to do a good job with us. At this point we may not have a [spot in the rotation]. We have some other guys who need to play a lot. In these back-to-back situations we’re probably going to get more minutes and I hope we’ll use them every time.”

Jaquez finished Saturday’s loss with seven points, three rebounds and one assist in 18 minutes. He’s still on a minutes restriction after suffering a groin injury during the preseason.

Jovic closed Saturday’s loss with eight points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 shooting from deep, four assists and a career-high 11 rebounds in 21 minutes. He’s also still on a minutes restriction because of a knee injury he sustained during the preseason.

“It’s just a day at a time,” Jaquez, 22, said of his minutes restriction. “Just trying to trust the process, trust the coaches. They have my best interest, so I’m not worried about that at all. It’s frustrating sometimes, but that’s just the competitor in me.”

INJURY REPORT

The Heat has missed multiple rotation players because of injuries in each of its first three games of the regular season.

For the fourth game of the regular season on Monday against the Bucks, the Heat ruled out forward Haywood Highsmith (left knee sprain). Highsmith has not yet played this regular season.

The Heat also listed Caleb Martin (left knee tendinosis) and Josh Richardson (right heel inflammation) as doubtful. The positive news is that Richardson, who missed the first three games of the season, joined the Heat in Milwaukee for Monday’s contest after initially not traveling with the team on the trip.

Forward Kevin Love, who missed Saturday’s loss to the Timberwolves with a left shoulder contusion, is probable to play on Monday.

Heat star Jimmy Butler, who sat out Saturday’s loss to rest on the second night of the back-to-back, is not on the injury report and is expected to play Monday.

The Heat’s hope is that this season doesn’t turn into a repeat of last regular season, when Miami finished with the second-most missed games in the NBA (289) due to injury based on Spotrac’s injury tracker.

“Not frustrating,” Lowry said of the Heat’s early-season injury issues. “It’s something we’ve dealt with and we take pride in next man up. It’s only three games in. Our guys will be back, they’ll be fine sooner than later, and it’s a marathon not a sprint.”