The Miami Heat are a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami. The team owner is Micky Arison, the general manager is Pat Riley and the head coach is Erik Spoelstra. The mascot of the team is Burnie, an anthropomorphic fireball.
The Heat were formed in 1988 as an expansion franchise. Along with the Orlando Magic, the Heat are one of the two NBA franchises that represent the state of Florida. Since entering the league, Miami has fielded squads that have made the playoffs 16 out of 24 seasons, capturing nine division titles, three Eastern Conference Championships, and two NBA Championships, defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4--2 in the 2006 NBA Finals and the Oklahoma City Thunder 4--1 in the 2012 NBA Finals. Their playoff run in the 1990s was largely marked by a vicious rivalry with the New York Knicks. According to Forbes Magazine, in 2010 the value of the franchise was about $425 million.
During the off-season, the Bulls drafted Norris Cole 28th overall in the 2011 NBA Draft, but in a series of draft night deals, his rights were subsequently traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, who then dealt him to the Heat. After the second NBA Lockout ended, the Heat would improve their roster by signing veteran Shane Battier. In the shortened 2011--12 season, the Heat got off to a 27--7 start, and for the second year in a row, James, Wade and Bosh were selected to the NBA All-Star Game.However, they would struggle for the second half of the season going 19--13. The Heat finished 46--20, earning the second seed in the east for the NBA Playoffs. Entering the first round, they took a 3-0 lead against the New York Knicks, but like their previous series with the Sixers, weren't able to close them out in Game 4. A victory in Game 5 ultimately defeated New York, and the Heat advanced to the second round versus the Indiana Pacers. In a Game 1 home victory, Chris Bosh went down with a lower abdominal strain injury, and was proclaimed to miss out on the rest of the Indiana series. After losing Game 2 at home and Game 3 at Indiana, many criticized Dwyane Wade's lackluster performance in Game 3, bringing attention to the fact that he got into a verbal argument with Spoelstra. However, with Wade visiting his former college coach, the team overcame adversity and defeated the Pacers in the next three games, with James and Wade often combining for an average of 70 points to close out the Pacers. They met the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, taking the first two games, before losing the next three, including one home loss where Bosh returned from the injury. However, on June 7, they took a big road win at Boston beating the Celtics 98--79 to tie the series 3--3; James had a remarkable 45 points and 15 rebounds. The deciding Game 7 was at Miami; although the Celtics largely dominated during the first half, the second half saw several lead changes as both teams went back and forth. The Heat eventually won 101--88, reaching the NBA Finals for the second straight year. In the much anticipated match-up with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Heat split the first two games, winning Game 2 on the road, before sweeping the next three at home. James was named the Finals MVP as he won his first NBA championship. The Heat became the first NBA team to win the Finals despite trailing in three different series beforehand (1-2 with Indiana, 2-3 with Boston and 0-1 with OKC). In addition, the Heat once again swept Games 3, 4 and 5 at home (becoming only the third team to do so) on their way to their second championship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miami_Heat
2012 NBA Champions the Miami Heat Visit the White House (2013) | |
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