How did the AllUCanHeat staff become fans of the Miami Heat? Learn that and more in this week’s roundtable.
Let’s take things all the way back… how did you first become a fan of the Miami Heat?
Allana Tachauer (@AllanaTachauer): Although I used to be a die-hard Chicago Bulls fan, I also always had my eye on someone by the name of Dwyane Wade. So while I didn’t completely embrace all that is Miami Heat Basketball until about 2011, I secretly kept tabs on the team since the day they drafted No. 3.
Brandon Johnson (@bjtripleot): You know, I don’t know if there was a moment I remember locking the Heat down as one of my favorite teams. I’ve followed the Miami Heat since they drafted Wade, though I can’t say for sure what led me to keeping tabs on them. That said, red is my favorite color, so those fiery jerseys likely had something to do with it.
Rahmeaun Rahming (@Boneman9000): It was kind of mysterious actually. I remember sometime between 1st and 2nd grade, a champion Alonzo Mourning jersey appeared in my dresser. I don’t remember my mom telling me she got for me or anyone else at home, so I did what any young kid would do: I put it on. I didn’t really know who Zo was but I knew he was a legend. I made sure to continue to watch the Heat’s disappointing seasons year after year. My great-grandmother and I always sang “Take me out the ball game” and our favorite part was always ‘Root root root for the home team. If they don’t win it’s a shame!’ And boy did we do a lot of losing.
Kris Keaton (@kmkeaton2): I became a Heat fan when Wade was drafted here. His Final Four run had really impressed me and I was ecstatic when his name was called on draft night.
Chase Eyrich (@Ceyrich): I became a Heat fan as a kid playing NBA Jam. Why? Because I figured the Heat were the best team for me to “catch on fire” with. I mean it’s the franchise’s logo, right?
Rich Nurse (@followthepen): I grew up a fan of the Detroit “Bad Boy” Pistons, but once they drafted Grant Hill (no offense Grant), the love went out of the window. So what better way to keep the familial competition than to adopt the team whose new coach lead the Los Angeles Lakers, just spurned the New York Knicks and went to war with the Indiana Pacers and Bulls?
Imran Ebrahim (@iebrahim81): I was always a huge Shaquille O’Neal fan. Little old me used to play him at every position in the video games back in the day. Then he got traded to the Heat and I fell in love with this youngster named Wade. He attacked the basket with reckless abandon and it was so much fun to watch. That’s where it all began.
Dario Ramos (@RamosHeat305): I started out as just a big Wade fan. I loved watching him play; there was just a certain flair to his game that made me interested and eventually borderline obsessed with Heat Basketball.
Michael Shofner: I started to pay attention to the Heat when I was a child, watching them battle and create a fierce rivalry with my beloved Chicago Bulls in 1996 or 1997. We all know the tremendous team that the Bulls had during that time, but if any team was to give that Chicago team a run for their money during the tail end of their second three-peat, it was the Heat led by exciting players such as Mourning, Tim Hardaway and Jamaal Mashburn. It was the start of a rivalry that demanded respect and attention, which delivered yearly classic playoff bouts, most recently between The Big Three and the Derrick Rose/Tom Thibodeau era.