Heat's Tyler Herro Says He Can Return for NBA Finals After Surgery for Hand Injury

Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, who suffered a broken right hand against the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday, told reporters that the goal is to return for the NBA Finals if his team advances that far in the playoffs.

"That's the hope," Herro said, per Steve Megargee of the Associated Press. "Get to the Finals and I can get back for that."

Herro suffered the injury while diving for a loose ball late in the second quarter of his team's 130-117 road win over the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.

The four-year veteran told reporters that he's set for surgery on Friday. The NBA Finals will begin on June 1.

Losing Herro is a tough blow to the Heat. He's the team's third-leading scorer at 20.1 points per game and first among rotation regulars in three-point percentage (37.8 percent).

"You can't fully make up what Tyler has been for our team all year long, but guys got to step up, including myself, including Bam [Adebayo] and whoever Spo calls upon to do an offensive assignment, a defensive assignment, to bring some energy, to dive on the floor, get a loose ball or rebound," Jimmy Butler told reporters (h/t Megargee). "It's like all hands on deck at all times, now more than ever."

Making the NBA Finals would have already been a tough task for the Heat with Herro. Miami is the Eastern Conference's No. 8 seed and needs to win three straight series against higher-seeded teams just to get to the championship round. Only one No. 8 seed (the 1999 New York Knicks) has ever made the NBA Finals.

It'll be an even more monumental task without him. Miami went just 7-8 without Herro during the regular season (37-30 otherwise). The onus will be on players such as Caleb Martin and Duncan Robinson, who started the second half Sunday in Herro's place, to step up in his absence.

Game 2 for the Heat will go down Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET in Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum.