Vice Nights comes with a re-commitment to Miami Heat culture
Miami Heat president Pat Riley is charging ahead with the team as is, save for some fresh neon colors.
Unveiling their brand new Nike City Edition jerseys, which boast fuchsia and blue gale lettering on a black base, the Miami Heat dominated the air waves this week.
Accompanied by a promotional video set to Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight”, the debut of Miami’s Vice Nights for the 2018-19 season, gave the team a level of publicity not felt since the arrival of LeBron James.
The Heat weren’t playing a game on Thursday, but the line leading up to the team store during the Midnight Madness event was enough to form a respectable crowd. The excitement for the new look came just in time too, as Miami continues to try and find its rhythm.
Miami’s 5-7 record tells a story of crunched lineups and adjustments to the NBA’s new, faster pace.
And for the most part, Miami has kept up on both fronts.
Injuries still plague the team, but big minutes from Dwyane Wade, Josh Richardson and Rodney McGruder have kept the team afloat. More triples, especially those from Richardson, who is shooting 40 percent, have helped modernize Miami’s offense as team fire from the hilt, on a nightly basis.
But the new uniforms, which stand as something of a re-branding for a Heat team that flamed out of the playoffs, stand in direct contrast of Miami, and more appropriately team president Pat Riley’s, vision.
Before the Vice merchandise officially dropped on November 8, Riley made note of the lone dagger—trade talks—hanging over Miami’s hopes for forward momentum.
"“I’m not looking, I’m listening and [general manager Andy Elisburg] and I are … we’ve been doing this all the time,” Riley said to the Miami Herald. “We’re not actively pursuing anything, we’re listening.”"
If this were the start of the season, when Jimmy Butler was the most lucrative prospect on the market, Miami’s withdrawal from trade talks would have looked upon with aversion.
Miami came into the year with the exact same lineup as last season, but the Butler trade provided a potential outlet for the team to theorycraft what a star driven team would look like.
Now, a month removed from the Butler fiasco, Miami’s tune has changed. The young bunch of upstarts the Heat field have stayed competitive, taking eight of their 11 games into crunch time, while embracing their strong points.
Richardson is still scoring, and is still hustling. The team’s record doesn’t suggest a guaranteed deep playoff run, but the continued focus on the strengths of this Heat team, gives them a leg up on the competition.
As a matter of fact, two legs up.
And those two legs shoot up to make a 7-foot tall center, named Hassan Whiteside.
He’s back
The Whiteside narrative of 2017-18 is over.
After enduring 54 games of Whiteside’s lackadaisical play and self-centered effort, the player that earned a four-year max contract in 2016, has returned to Heat ranks.
12 games into this season and Whiteside is playing some of the best basketball of his career, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down. His 15.7 rebounds per game are second most in the Association, while his 3.5 blocks each night place him as the king of counter-strikes.
It’s not just that Whiteside is putting up the numbers. Everything about his game oozes an agility and flexibility, that was once thought lost from the big man.
On Friday night, two of Whiteside’s 11 points came on a baseline catch into drop step—all in one, fluid motion, mind you—and slam dunk finish. The emphasis on post moves and paint spacing that has long been a weakness of Whiteside’s game, has finally blossomed into one of his defining strengths.
His revitalization comes at a perfect time too, considering the partial Miami Vice re-brand.
Alongside Richardson and McGruder’s stellar play, and Dwyane Wade’s steady leadership, Whiteside and the Heat are giving fans a reason to stay excited for Miami Heat Basketball, beyond some fresh jerseys.
Sticking with Whiteside, who at one point could have been part of the Butler trade, has been a re-committal to Miami’s home grown culture; Whiteside thrived with the Heat in seasons past, and he’s proving he can reach and surpass his previous best.
Next. Miami Heat should expand their trade looks to Washington. dark
Though missing out on Butler seemed like a life sentence to remain stationary on the treadmill of mediocrity, leaning into their identity—which includes all 14 guys on the roster—can still prove to be Miami’s trump card, long term.