Heat Notes: Herro, Okpala, Adebayo, Spoelstra, Olympics

Heat guard Tyler Herro is off to an electric start to the preseason, increasing the hype around the 21-year-old entering his third NBA campaign, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes.

Herro has scored 26, 24 and 26 points in his first three games, respectively, shooting 28-of-50 from the field (56%). Miami will depend on his scoring off the bench as it looks to compete for a title this season.

“He has really improved all across the board,” head coach Erik Spoelstra said. “His skill level is extremely high. He has really worked at it. This is a league that’s becoming a league of skill and he’s developing into one of the most skilled players in this league. You can see he gets where he needs to get. He can get to different levels on the floor. So, it’s a very good start for him.”

There’s more out of Miami today:

• The clock is ticking on forward KZ Okpala, who’s also entering his third season with the organization, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes. The Heat traded three second-round picks to acquire Okpala on the night of the 2019 NBA Draft, but the 22-year-old has played just 42 games in the last two seasons. Okpala is expected to play behind Max Strus and Markieff Morris as a third-string player to start the season.
• The team’s game against San Antonio on Friday served as a reunion for Bam Adebayo, Erik Spoelstra and Gregg Popovich, Chiang writes in a different piece for the Miami Herald. Adebayo played for Popovich last summer on Team USA, while Spoelstra served as head coach of the select team. “It was an amazing basketball and life experience,” Spoelstra said. “I’ve admired Pop, like everybody in this business, for years. To be able to see him behind the scenes in that setting was like a Master’s class in coaching and also human being relations. It’s amazing how he makes everybody feel like they have a role, that they matter and he has a great way of making the entire room feel inclusive.”
• Ira Winderman examines whether Tyler Herro has already cemented his role this season in his latest mailbag for the Sun Sentinel. In addition to using Herro as a sixth man, Miami has also given him some minutes at point guard when Kyle Lowry sits during the preseason.