While subtracting LeBron James from the franchise, the Miami Heat have added three jersey numbers to retire in Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and the mayor of Miami, Udonis Haslem. Do you know what these three guys have in common?
They opted out of their contracts in hope of taking a pay cut alongside James in order to bring in talent and make another run for the NBA finals. But that did not happened. What actually happened was James chose to go to Cleveland Cavaliers, while Bosh was leveraging Houston to get an extra year from the Heat, Wade signing on for two extra years and Haslem is projected to sign with the Heat as well.
In terms of sacrifice, Wade settled for less shots the past four years and for smaller pay compared to what he was projected to make the next two years. The face of the franchise has never been the highest paid player on his team. And he continues to settle for less for the Heat, signing a two year deal worth $31 million dollars and allowing Chris Bosh to get a five year max offer for $118 million dollars. And when it comes to Haslem, a role player who sometimes doesn’t even suit up for the team, opted out of the final year of his contract of $4.62 million.
Basically these three players are going to go down alongside Tim Hardaway and Alonzo Mourning as a Miami Heat greats.
Some would say James has worn out his welcome with the Heat fan base with more and more news coming out on how James went about his exit from the Heat. While Bosh has gained even more appreciation from the city. Wade has resumed being the living legend and Haslem is going down as the “Mayor of Miami”.
This past week has resulted in a complete transformation in the franchise post James Era. The entire city is excited for the upcoming season. It is a new season, new expectations and a new outlook. A more appreciation for these three players.
A new marketing campaign has started with Wade by Lyfe Brand, a local clothing company that created the Heatles shirts. All the shirts produced feature the number 3 and are geared toward loyalty and “home is where the heart is”. We cannot forget the “Trophi3s”.
As soon as Chris Bosh re-signed with the Heat, a photo was taken of him that instantly became reminded the fan base why they love him. Brim down, title ring on middle finger; the message was sent and beloved by the city. The fan base knew the impact of Bosh on the court and appreciated it while he was off it. The results were obvious, James and Wade couldn’t get into the lane with the same ease with Bosh on the court.
When it comes to the Mayor of Miami, he represents the city at its finest. He has a giant state Florida tattooed on his back. His the enforcer when need be, not afraid to tell Lance Stephenson he will jack him if he keep messing with his superstars. Declaring James part of the 305, which is Miami-Dade counties area code.
But from the standpoint of the Miami Heat, these three players mean more than one can imagine. It further emphasizes loyalty. The Heat organization loves to preach it to their future acquisitions. You stick with them and not leave when the nearest door opens, they will take care of you. Just like they have with Tim Hardaway, Alonzo Mourning, and Coach Erik Spoelstra who notably has worked his way up to head coach. Same could be said for assistant general manager Andy Ellisburg, who started out as an intern. And you can expect the same for Bosh, Wade and Haslem who will get their numbers retired, a statue out front of the American Airlines Arena.
With a superstar exiting, Pat Riley is refusing to accept a rebuild process. Instead, he's looking at re-tooling. Signing Luol Deng to fill in for James and turning around and signing Wade for less and giving a max offer to Bosh. He is telling future free agents not to expect a rebuild.