Tyler Herro is known for many things, but defense isn't one of them. In fact, it's his biggest weakness as a player. As he embraces first-option duties with the Milwaukee Bucks, though, Herro must turn it up a notch on defense if he truly wants to survive. Following Milwaukee's practice on Tuesday, Coach Taylor Jenkins made it clear that he's a defense-first guy, only intensifying pressure on Herro.
"I'm probably defensive-minded at heart," Jenkins said... "Defensively, I told them that's something that we have to have pride in. Individually, for sure, but collectively, how we want to play on offense, unselfishness, aggressive, and discipline, you know, we got to do that on the defensive side as well. But that's got to be our mainstay."
Herro must be passable defensively
No, even if defense is a focus for this group, the Milwaukee Bucks won't expect Herro to morph into an All-Defensive player overnight. They understand his shortcomings, often being targeted by other guards or forwards with more size than him. However, that doesn't mean he is a lost cause entirely. If he can at least be serviceable, that would be a major win for the franchise.
For the two-guard, it all starts with effort.
While he can—and will be expected to—give plenty of it on offense, he also needs to save some of that energy for defense. Even if he's not locking anyone up, can he still be a pest with active hands? He has never averaged a steal per game in his career, mainly because he has rarely been in the top half of the Miami Heat's roster in the deflections per game category throughout his career.
If Herro can ramp up the intensity and at least garner some respect defensively, it will raise his ceiling.
Bucks can surround Herro with help
Again, the Milwaukee Bucks aren't expecting magical growth overnight—though Brook Lopez showed that anything is possible when you land in the 414. Milwaukee brought Herro in to be the team's go-to scorer, not to be Jrue Holiday or P.J. Tucker. That responsibility will go to others in Milwaukee's fresh-looking supporting cast, who could make things somewhat easier for Herro nightly.
In the backcourt, Ryan Rollins, Brayden Burries, and Kevin Porter Jr. are all feisty defenders who can mask Herro's shortcomings against guards. Kyle Kuzma is a lengthier forward who can switch onto a matchup trying to take advantage of the smaller Herro. Myles Turner, Kel'el Ware, and Jericho Sims are all towering bigs who can provide support at the hoop if Herro is blown by.
That can all help keep Herro's defensive responsibility relatively low.
While the Milwaukee Bucks have the cast to shield Herro at times, they would certainly like him to get involved in the defensive effort. If he takes real strides and at least becomes serviceable on that side of the court, it could work wonders for his case as a new contract looms. Yet, if the guard gets played off the floor in big moments often, handing him that massive deal would be hard to justify.
Defense will never be the first or second thing that comes to mind when talking about Tyler Herro, but could it be the third or fourth? It could make a world of difference for him and the Milwaukee Bucks. If it remains an issue, it could plague his Bucks tenure. Hopefully, being surrounded by this much talent and a defensive-minded coach in Jenkins can give him a little extra push.
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