In the summer of 2010, the Miami Heat pulled off a historic move by pairing LeBron James with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in South Florida. Unsurprisingly, that paid off in two NBA championships.
The Heat failed to get the trophy in the first season with their Big Three, suffering an unexpected loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals. However, they bounced back with consecutive rings in 2012 and 2013.
LeBron went on to succeed in Cleveland and Los Angeles, but those two victories with the Heat will always be special. Though Wade and Bosh played a pivotal role in his first titles, Gilbert Arenas believes Udonis Haslem deserves credit for The King’s success in Miami.
Gilbert Arenas says LeBron won in Miami because of Udonis Haslem
“The two championships LeBron got there, you got to credit him for it because he’s the one that took the pay cut to make it happen,” Gilbert Arenas said on his podcast. “UD was offered $33 million to go to Milwaukee, turned that down, and signed whatever was left. He protected his stars. You foul Dwyane Wade, you hit LeBron, you hit anybody on this team, I’m coming.“
When did LeBron James leave the Heat?
LeBron James left the Miami Heat in the summer of 2014, shortly after losing the NBA Finals to the San Antonio Spurs.
That offseason, The King decided to go back to the Cleveland Cavaliers, aiming to help the franchise that drafted him first overall in 2003 win its first ever NBA championship.
How many seasons did Udonis Haslem spend in Miami?
Udonis Haslem spent 20 NBA seasons with the Miami Heat from 2003 to 2023.
UD40 was part of the franchise’s three NBA championships (2006, 2012, and 2013), spending his last six seasons in South Florida on minimum contracts.
