Things are getting chippy for the first-place Cleveland Cavaliers and the No. 8 seed Miami Heat as their first-round series shifts back to South Beach. These teams seem not to like each other very much; let's just put it that way. And now, tension appears to be brewing between opposing All-Star guards.
Cavaliers standout floor general Darius Garland took a direct shot at Miami's Tyler Herro following his team's 121-112 Game 2 over the Heat. The former point-blank told reporters that Cleveland's offensive approach thus far in their best-of-seven matchup has been to "pick on" the latter. Said comments have officially sparked a war of words ahead of Game 3.
Herro was asked about Garland's blatant jab. Rather than taking the high road, the Heat combo guard clapped back -- on the record, a sign the smack talk is ostensibly getting personal.
Tyler Herro further answers about Darius Garland’s comments.
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) April 25, 2025
“And to go to the media to talk about game plans against a guy kind of says a lot about him. I’m not worried about Darius Garland…”
Would also ask him about if it’s extra fuel for tomorrow. #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/lqGwtmRO73
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Tyler Herro responds to Darius Garland's chirps ahead of Heat-Cavs Game 3
"To go to the media to talk about game plans against a guy kind of says a lot about him," Herro stated (h/t ClutchPoints' Zachary Weinberger). "I’m not worried about Darius Garland."
Moreover, despite Garland publicly slandering him, Herro expressed he remains focused on knotting up the series in Miami before returning to Cleveland.
"I'm worried about winning a playoff game, and that's what we came back to Miami to do, to win two at home," Herro declared.
While Herro respects Garland's competitive spirit in the heat of battle, he'd respect it more if the latter weren't a poor defender himself.
"Somebody that doesn't play defense shouldn't be talking, either," Herro said. "[Garland] don't play any defense and we'll see that [in Game 3]. He don't play no D."
Frankly, Herro and Garland are both liabilities on the defensive end of the floor, so the latter isn't in much of a position to talk. For whatever it's worth, the former posted a better defensive rating this season and throughout their careers since they entered the Association together in 2019. But it proves that no one is right in this entertaining exchange of words.