OFFICIAL 2014-2015 @miamiHEAT SEASON THREAD (31-36) : RILEY GOT DRAGIC....DISCOUNTED!!!!!

Five Reasons Miami Heat Fans Deserve More Respect
By Ryan Yousefi Wed., Aug. 6 2014 at 8:30 AM

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When LeBron James headed back home to Cleveland, he forgot to pack something Heat fans hoped he'd take with him -- namely, the national hate for Dade County's fans. Before LeBron came to Miami, no one really had a problem with Heat fans, but while he was here, Heat fans caught what amounted to LeBron James ricochet-hate.

Now that LeBron has left, the easy joke to make is that Heat fans will follow. Somehow a fan base that sold out every game the past four years wasn't good enough for everyone on the outside, just another example of how plastic, fake, and fickle Miami is as a whole. Enough is enough.

Fact is, the Heat has long had one of the best fan bases in the NBA, and the numbers back up that claim. A franchise younger than almost every player on the team has proven time and time again that fans do just fine supporting the Heat. So let's bust some myths, dammit. Here's why Miami Heat fans deserve much more respect.
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1. Breaking news: Miami didn't invent the bandwagon fan. Glass houses, bro.
Looking for an example of another team that saw an incredibly rapid rise in fan interest in relation to their team's sudden success wasn't the least bit hard. I just cherry-picked my favorite.

Here are the attendance numbers for "Team A" during a four-year stretch.

2005-06: 16,899 (18th in the NBA)
2006-07: 16,843 (20th in the NBA)
2007-08: 18,624 (12th in the NBA)
2008-09: 18,624 (12th in the NBA)

The franchise above ranked in the lower half of the NBA in attendance prior to the 2007-08 season, then saw a jump in ticket sales from 2007-09. "Team A" is the Boston Celtics, a franchise with 17 NBA titles and a fan base regarded as one of the, if not the, most loyal in the NBA. Except, you see, when they aren't.

The Celtics won 24 games in 2006-07, good for last in the Eastern Conference, so why did they see attendance jump from 20th to 12th after such a terrible season? Because something odd happened -- they added good players, and people like nice things! So weird! In the 2007-08 off-season, the Celtics traded for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. The following season, the Celtics won 42 more games than the year prior plus an NBA championship.

So to recap, arguably the league's most storied franchise has fans that tend to support a winner more so than a loser, which is so odd, because I thought that just happened in Miami. At least in Miami we do bandwagoning right. Boston, you could manage only the league's 12th best attendance? You're doing it wrong.

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2. Almost no Heat fans left Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals. I know, I'll give you a second to recover from that karate chop of truth your face just ate.
I'm so good at Photoshop! It took me hours to cut and paste little Miami Heat fans into these pictures.

Let's get something out of the way: Leaving this game was inexcusable. Heat fans that bailed on Game 6 for what amounts to a 15-minute head start on their sad drive home should be ashamed of themselves and rightfully have to live with that decision for the rest of their lives. Now that that's out of the way, we can talk facts. Almost no one left this game early, like literally almost nobody. No, wait -- I'll explain! I know the pictures above of a packed arena aren't enough for some of the slower members of our audience.

AmericanAirlines Arena sits/stands north of 20,000 people for an NBA Finals game. Deadspin correctly put up a post titled "Hundreds of Heat Fans Leave Game 6 Early; a Nation Laughs" following the game. I'm no mathematician, but let's say 500 left -- that would mean 2.5 percent of the people in that arena decided to beat traffic -- not exactly enough of a number to make a sweeping generalization about a fan base. Hell, call it 1,000 -- that's still 5 percent, which is about the same number of fans you might find taking a dump at any given moment during an NBA game. It's a slippery slope pointing out the shady actions of the lower 5 percent of your fan base. I'm looking at you, Boston Bruins fans.

Look at the pictures, America. Watch the video. USE YOUR FACE TO DO THESE THINGS! I BELIEVE IN YOU!


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3. LeBron wasn't kidding -- everything is earned in Cleveland, apparently including Cavaliers attendance numbers.
"I wish he had stayed in Cleveland, because those fans in Cleveland, man, they're fantastic. They don't even have real fans here in Miami. They're frontrunners." -- Charles Barkley

Oh, Charles, so butt-hurt. These next paragraphs will only make your butthurtitis flare up even more.

Cavaliers attendance with LeBron James:

2006-07: 20,436 (3rd in the NBA)
2007-08: 20,465 (3rd in the NBA)
2008-09: 20,010 (5th in the NBA)
2009-10: 20,562 (2nd in the NBA)

Cavaliers attendance without LeBron James:

2010-11: 20,112 (3rd in the NBA)
2011-12: 15,926 (19th in the NBA)
2012-13: 16,192 (22nd in the NBA)
2013-14: 17,329 (16th in the NBA)

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Seems to me Cavaliers fans are more loyal when LeBron James plays for them, which again, is so weird because I thought that was strictly a Miami thing. This is by far the most ridiculous myth of them all, the thought that Heat fans are somehow terrible fans because more of them decided to use their spare income on watching the greatest athlete on Earth play. It happened in Cleveland. It happened in Miami. It would happen in any town. If the same number of fans came out the first year LeBron was in Miami, people would have mocked the Heat fan base, but when they do come out in larger numbers, that's somehow a negative too.

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4. Knock, knock. Who's there? Heat fans. Probably a lot more of them than your favorite team's fans.
In the past decade, the Miami Heat has placed inside the top eight teams attendance-wise eight times, and seven times the Heat has been in the top five. Saying a team has sold so many tickets in the past ten years wouldn't be so impressive if it didn't represent nearly 40 percent of the team's entire existence. It's hilarious to say Heat fans come and go as they please, but at least they come, unlike other fan bases that don't arrive late -- they just don't arrive at all.

The Heat's fan attendance average of 6.7 over the past decade places it above teams known for their loyalty, such as the Spurs and the Thunder. All this while paying at times double and triple the price other teams fans do to get into games and with a league-high average parking price of $35 last year.

Once again, you just notice the empty seats at the beginning of Heat games because they are always broadcast on television.
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5. Forbes has ranked Miami Heat fans among the "Most Loyal" the past few years, according to its Brand Keys Sports Fan Loyalty Index (SLI). So suck it. High-fives, Forbes
Ohhhh, but what does Forbes know? The Brand Keys Sports Fan Loyalty Index interviews fans in the media markets of all 30 NBA teams to calculate a comparison of each fan base. In addition to win-loss record, the survey includes things like "authenticity," "fan bonding," and "history and tradition." The study was designed to help teams like the Heat identify what drives fan loyalty in their home and national markets. In 2013 the Miami Heat placed first, and in the most recent study, it finished third -- not too bad for a bunch of crappy fans. Cleveland Cavaliers fans have finished near the bottom in each of the last two years.

The Forbes study is an "apples-to-apples comparison of the intensity with which fans within a team's local catchment area support the home team versus corresponding values for fans of other teams."

So I guess Heat fans will have to settle for their loyalty being proven through actual facts and research rather than the sniff tests of guys like Michael Wilbon and Charles Barkely. Oh, how will we sleep at night?

Follow Miami New Times on Facebook and Twitter @MiamiNewTimes.

The link to the article is here:
http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2014/08/miami_heat_fans.php?page=2
 
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Yea great post, kinda clears up that whole game 6 situation, people made it seem like we cleared house, knew there was no way we were that frail
 
At the end of the day, the article just proves that most "sports journalist" and talking heads were reaching. They were looking for any and everything wrong with the Miami Heat and the easy target was the fans. Turns out that was mostly propaganda perpetuated and sustained by ESPN and the drones who follow Skip Bayless and the "First Take" crew.

And :rofl: at Dan LeBatard.... The master of Trolls. It's funny to see people take him seriously as if he were some salty jaded LeBron fan. Can't wait till 3pm today to see what they're gonna say...
 
So I wonder how great of a story that LeBron is back in Cleveland with his super team being established?

Bron, Love, Kyrie, Verajou, Miller, Dion, Thompson, Marion, Jones, and maybe Allen...

It's lame he came to Miami to get his rings and now he's back in Cleveland using Riley's formula of trying to get ring #3.

I'm losing respect for this guy and his lame persona.
 
YouGotThese YouGotThese

I get where you're coming from, but there is one HUGE difference. This Cleveland team is full of unproven talent. In 2010 Wade had already won a Championship and was a Finals MVP, Bosh was a 20 points and 10 rebounds guy who got his teams to the playoffs on multiple occasions. Haslem was another guy who had won a Championship and was still in his prime. Battier and Mike Miller were glue guys who brought versatility and spacing.

Then when you compare the organizations behind the players the differences are even bigger. The Heat have one of the best owners in Sports, one of the best medical staffs, currently the best GM and scouting teams, and at the time one of the youngest and talented coaches in the NBA. What does Clevleand have.. a no named coach, a suspected bigot for an owner, and an overall organization that hasn't sniffed the playoffs with top draft picks.

The point is that 2010 Heat team that went to the Finals and lost had more talent and experience then this current Cleveland team. Love and Kyrie are great players, but they have never lead their perspective teams to winning seasons. LeBron is in for a rude awakening if he thinks all he has to do is get a few former Heat players to sustain that championship DNA Miami has built.

I'll take LBJ's word that it will be a long process to mold that young Cleveland team into Champions. He has to whip that organization into shape, which is why his contract is structured the way it is.

But what do I know.... I'm just a Heat bandwagon fan :tongue:

#LetsGoHeat
 
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OFFICIAL: The @MiamiHEAT have signed G Tyler Johnson - http://t.co/ea80pnISGp
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) August 7, 2014
Click to expand...


HEAT Signs Tyler Johnson
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Posted: Aug 07, 2014

MIAMI, August 7 – The Miami HEAT announced today that they have signed guard Tyler Johnson. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Most recently, Johnson appeared in 11 Summer League games with the HEAT and averaged 12.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 22.2 minutes while shooting 54.8 percent from the field, 46.7 percent from three-point range and 81.4 percent from the foul line.

Johnson played four seasons at Fresno State University, appearing in 127 career games (87 starts) and averaged 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.10 steals and 27.9 minutes while shooting 45.6 percent from the field, 37.4 percent from three-point range and 71.6 percent from the foul line. He finished his collegiate career ranked No. 16 on Fresno State's all-time scoring list (1,346 career points). As a senior, he was named to the All-Mountain West Second Team and shot 43.2 percent from three-point range, the sixth-highest single-season three-point field goal percentage in school history.
http://www.nba.com/heat/heat/news/heat-signs-tyler-johnson_140807










Welcome to Heat Nation Tyler!
 
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Welcome mistah Williams and mistah Tyler

Happy were getting some fresh legs

This season couldn't come around any sooner
 
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Tyler Johnson :smokin

Went to school with him. Gotta root for the hometown boy!

Wish I had went here a little earlier though maybe I would have got to see PG play as well lol
 
Tim Hardaway leaves Heat to become Pistons assistant


By Ira Winderman South Florida Sun Sentinel

5:50 p.m. EDT, August 7, 2014
MIAMI—

Tim Hardaway didn't want to leave the Miami Heat, didn't want to leave South Florida. But he also desperately wanted to coach.

So he decided to put his Heat ties to use. Thursday, the former Heat All-Star point guard confirmed to the Sun Sentinel that he will be joining Stan Van Gundy's Detroit Pistons staff as an assistant coach.

For Hardaway, who has spent recent years working for the Heat as a scout as well as a community and corporate liaison, it is his first NBA coaching job and the first time he has served as a coach since guiding the Florida Pit Bulls of the minor-league American Basketball Association to a 19-8 record in 2006 at what now is the BB&T Center.

"As soon as Stan got that coaching and president job, I called him and said, 'I want to help,' " Hardaway, 47, said, with Van Gundy a Heat assistant coach during Hardaway's prime seasons in South Florida. "I said, 'I want to come coach with you.' "

Hardaway had been prodding Heat President Pat Riley for years about a coaching role, but the Heat staff largely has remained intact from when Riley coached. Hardaway in the interim had lobbied for an assistant role at Florida International University when his longtime friend and rival Isiah Thomas held the coaching job there. Instead, Hardaway was given an increased role in the Heat's scouting department in recent years.

"Stan asked Pat if he could talk to me and Pat said yes. That's how it started," Hardaway said.

"I knew with the Heat there wasn't a chance because of so many people in front of me, and I didn't want to step on toes. I was humble to the Heat and thanked them for my opportunities."

The Heat retired Hardaway's No. 10 in 2009.

"It's tough leaving there," he said, having joined the Heat in 1995-96, Riley's first season as Heat coach. "I've been here for a long time. I've been a Miami Heat for a long time. I've got a lot of great friends in Miami. I thank Micky [Arison, the Heat owner]. I thank Pat. I thank the Heat organization for what they've given me."

Hardaway offered his comments before leaving for the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., where former Heat teammate Alonzo Mourning will be inducted Friday. Mourning's No. 33 is the only other Heat number retired. Hardaway, a Hall finalist, fell short of induction this year.

Mourning is a Heat front-office executive, with another three years remaining on that contract.

"I'm happy for Zo, I'm ready for the festivities up there for Mitch [Richmond, Hardaway's former Golden State Warriors teammate]," he said. "I'll wait my turn for that, but right now I can't wait to get started with Stan."

Hardaway already is used to working the enemy, with his son, Tim Hardaway Jr., debuting with the New York Knicks last season. Among those who will join Hardaway on Van Gundy's Pistons staff is former Heat forward Malik Allen.

"When I first called Stan, he said, 'Are you sure?' I said I was sure," Hardaway said. "We had a first meeting and then we had a second meeting that went well. I've waited for a lot in my life and I've waited a long time for this. I know I'm ready now."

Forward added

The Heat, according to multiple reports, have invited Middle Tennessee State forward Shawn Jones to training camp. Jones, a former prep standout in Hialeah, was Conference USA Player of the Year and impressed during the NBA's Las Vegas summer league with the Los Angeles Clippers

The Heat on Thursday formally announced the signing of undrafted Fresno State guard Tyler Johnson.

Jones and Johnson leave the Heat with 15 players, the maximum teams can carry during the regular season. Teams can carry as many as 20 players during the offseason . . .

Heat free-agent center Greg Oden was arrested Thursday morning in Lawrence, Ind., for allegedly punching his girlfriend. Oden played sparingly this past season with the Heat and is not expected to return.
 
ESPN suspends Dan Le Batard for LeBron billboard 'stunt'

ESPN television and radio host Dan Le Batard was suspended for two days after he paid for billboards in Cleveland that mockingly read “You’re Welcome LeBron; Love, Miami” and displayed the two title rings he won with the Heat. The billboards were a sly reference to James’ famed letter to Cleveland, which seemed to thank everybody except for Miami fans and their four years of support. The top line was written in Comic Sans, of course.


The network released a statement about the suspension on Thursday.

“Dan LeBatard will be off the air for two days, returning Monday. His recent stunt does not reflect ESPN’s standards and brand. Additionally, we were not made aware of his plans in advance.”

Le Batard had been joking for weeks about playfully sabotaging LeBron’s big welcome home rally in Akron. At first, he debated taking out a full-page newspaper ad. Then, he researched the costs of pulling a banner with an airplane. Finally, he and his show took out the billboards. He spoke about the plan with Miami Herald columnist and occasional co-host Greg Cote.

It’s just fun anarchy. All meant in fun — which, of course, will turn into Cleveland people getting filled with rage, poison and irrational hostility and want to use those billboards as a guillotine. Sports are so great, the more irrational the better. This is a publicity stunt disguised as a movement. Please don’t tell anyone there is no actual movement.

His employer didn’t seem to appreciate the joke.

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/08/dan-le-batard-suspended-espn-lebron-james-billboard
 
yea...seems like we pulling any and everyone right now hoping for a diamond in the rough situation. we'll just have to see.
 
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