Pelle Larsson is playing so good that he's slowly taken over the Dru Smith role for the Miami Heat. At this point, when the Heat gets back to full strength, Larsson could end up playing Smith out of the team's rotation altogether. Considering how much of a favorite Smith has been during his time with the Heat, that speaks to just how impressive Larsson has been at the start of this season.
The problem with Larsson's night is what happened when the Magic had the ball. Larsson looked lost defensively and at times looked like he had gone to Spirit Halloween and picked out a traffic cone as his costume. It contributed to Larsson racking up five fouls in those 21 minutes and finishing with a plus/minus of -17, 2nd worst on the Heat behind the -22 Precious Achiuwa put up.
Not only is Herro coming off a career year in which he made the All-Star Game, but he's the team's leading scorer, and paced them in assists as well. Miami's offense was already at a disadvantage with him. It has no top-tier creator. Herro is their best passer, which is a testament to his evolution, and also not ideal. Without him, the Heat's offense could be subject to complete and utter implosion.
Larsson has played three games and seems to keep getting better with each game. In his most recent game on Monday, Larsson scored 28 points off 10/20 shooting and got to the free-throw line six times. As we have highlighted from his Summer League play, Larsson's ability to get to the line all summer could be a major boost for a Heat team that was near the bottom of the league in free-throw attempts in 2024-25.
