The NBA Clutch Player of the Year has only been handed out twice, making it the league’s newest honor. Miami Heat All-Star Tyler Herro has been nominated by head coaches as his team’s top candidate.
De’Aaron Fox won the inaugural award when he was with the Sacramento Kings in 2022-23, while Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was last season’s honoree. The award is voted on by media after coaches nominate candidates, with the winner receiving the Jerry West Trophy.
Herro averaged a career-best 23.9 points and was named to the All-Star team for the first time. He played in 77 games, 10 more than his previous career high, and also set a personal best with 251 made 3-pointers.
Herro received criticism for pulling up for a 3-pointer instead of cruising in for a wide open layup in last week’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, but he has been the Heat’s best option in clutch situations all season. Herro responded to the poor decision by stating he’s going to “live and die” by the belief he has in himself. Although head coach Erik Spoelstra wasn’t thrilled with his star’s lack of situational awareness, both he and teammate Bam Adebayo praised his fearlessness and “killer mentality.”
In nominating Herro for this Clutch Player Award, opposing coaches are lauding the Heat shooting guard’s ability to come through when it matters most.
Clutch stats, by definition, come into play in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter of games in which teams are separated by five or fewer points, and Herro’s numbers aren’t likely to garner him enough votes to prevail over more deserving candidates. In the final five minutes of “clutch” games, Herro shot just 26.1 percent from the field and 17.4 percent from 3-point range. In the final three minutes of games, his 3-point percentage dipped to 15.6 percent.
Considering how poorly Miami fared in fourth quarters this season, leading the NBA in blown double-digit leads, Herro would’ve been facing an uphill battle even if his numbers were better.
The 30 candidates include past winners Curry and Fox (Spurs), Jalen Brunson (Knicks), Trae Young (Hawks), Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves), Nikola Jokic (Nuggets) and MVP frontrunner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder).
