Prior to the season, Tyler Herro received word that he was not in the Miami Heat's starting lineup.It must be recognized that Herro saw it as an opportunity.“I said, 'Go for Best Sixth Man,'” the player recalled.And that was what he received.On Tuesday, Herro was notified that he had won the award for Best Sixth Man of the season.He is the first player to win this award with the Heat.He averaged 20.7 points, nearly four more per game than any other backup in the league, plus he played a big role in ensuring the Heat finished atop the Eastern Conference."It means a lot," Herro acknowledged."I accepted the role of sixth man for a reason, I wanted to be the best sixth man in the league."That was Herro, awarded by an overwhelming majority of the 100 journalists and communicators who cover the league and vote on the awards that are given at the end of the season.He received 96 first-place votes and 488 points, well above second-place Kevin Love of the Cavaliers.The Suns' Cameron Johnson was third."Everyone who knows me knows that I love Tyler Herro's game (and style), there is great respect in an incredible sixth man campaign," Love posted on Twitter.Love received three first-place votes and 214 points in a system in which players receive five units for first place, three for second and one for third.Johnson received a first-place vote and 128 units."Tyler was on fire with the team," Heat coach Eric Spoelstra said."He was that way the whole season."Herro had eight 30-point games as a substitute, more than the other three players combined.The last time a backup had at least eight 30-point games was in 2017-18 when Lou Williams had one with the Los Angeles Clippers.Before it was Ricky Pierce in 1989-90 with 17 with Milwaukee.In those years Pierce and Williams -- two of the greatest sixth men of all time -- took home the award that Herro received on Tuesday.Herro found out during a ceremony at practice Tuesday.His partner Udonis Haslem was the presenter.This was the sixth award to be announced, along with Most Improved Player (Memphis' Ja Morant), Rookie of the Year (Toronto's Scottie Barnes) and Defensive Player of the Year (Boston's Marcus Smart).Missing: Coach of the Year (Spoelstra, Phoenix's Monty Willams and Memphis' Taylor Jenkins are the finalists), MVP (possibly Philadelphia's Joel Embiid, Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic of Denver).Receive the latest news in Spanish Monday, Wednesday and Friday.Subscribe to our newsletterYou may occasionally receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune en Español.To ensure that the San Diego Union-Tribune en Español remains healthy and robust, your donation, in any measure, is now more important than ever.Help us continue to inform the community.To donate click on the logo.Privacy Policy Privacy Policy Terms of Service Sign Up For Our Newsletters