Before the start of the 2003-2004 season, the Heat, who had good space cap from Mourning’s expired contract, signed Lamar Odom and Rafer Alston.
They also drafted Superstar Dwyane Wade from the Marquette University as the 5th overall pick along with future superstars Lebron James and Carmelo Anthony. They also got Udonis Haslem from the University of Florida and the Heat’s roster is starting to build-up. Along with them were Brian Grant, Eddie Jones, Allen, Caron and Rasual Butler to suprise the NBA of what they got.
The Heat also promoted their assistant coach Stan Van Gundy as their head coach, to replace Pat Riley who stepped down before the season.
Dwyane Wade established himself as one of the top rookies to look for in the future as he break some rookie records as the season progressed. He also lead the Miami Heat in the playoffs in defeating the former Charlotte Hornets. They lost against the Indian Pacers in the semifinals.
The next season, they made a blockbuster move that made them acquire Shaquille O’neal in exchange for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler and Brian Grant for the Los Angeles Lakers. The O’neal and Wade tandem grew and seems to be compared to the O’neal Bryant from the Lakers that won three NBA titles.
They both averaged more than 20 points and led the team to a 59-23 win-loss record. They were the first seed in the postseason, winning the first two rounds, sweeping the New Jersey Nets and Washington Wizards. They moved to the Eastern Conference Finals against the defending champion Detroit Pistons. They lost to the Pistons in seven games.
They reorganized their roster the next season, acquiring key players Antoine Walker, Jason Williams and James Posey for Eddie Jones, Rasual Butler and Qyntel Woods. They also got the former Superstar Gary Payton and sharpshooter Jason Kapono. Pat Riley decided to return as the head coach of the team as Stan Van Gundy stepped down because of personal reasons. Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’neal led the team to finish the season with a 52-30 win-loss record.
They were the 2nd seed of the Eastern Conference and battled the 7th seed Bulls in the first round. They won over the Bulls and faced the New Jersey Nets in the second. They defeated the Nets and moved on to their next opponent,the Detroit Pistons. They won the series against the Pistons and advanced to their first NBA Finals appearance. They were crowned as the NBA Champions as they defeated the Dallas Mavericks in an exciting seven game series.
The next seasons of the Heat worsens as their superstars and rosters were plagued with injuries. Up until 2010, the Heat is rebuilding as they always barely reached the playoffs.
In the summer of 2010, the biggest freen agency of the decade came and they had successfully acquired Lebron James and Chris Bosh with the signing also of Dwyane Wade. The signing of the big three came as a surprise because never in the history had a team that signed three players with the caliber of Wade, James and Bosh. It was a huge change in the NBA and to the respective teams where Bosh and James came from.
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