Miami Heat History Online Information and NBA Betting Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook

NBA Miami Heat History betting odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook

NBA Miami Heat History 2006 Playoffs Earning the second seed in the 2006 playoffs, the Miami Heat drew the seventh seed Chicago Bulls as their first round opponent. The Heat won the first two games of the series at home, despite Udonis Haslem being ejected in the first game and suspended in the second for throwing his mouthpiece in the area of the referee. The team lost games three and four in Chicago, but bounced back to win game five at home. After winning game six in Chicago, the Heat eliminated the Bulls from the playoffs and went on to face the New Jersey Nets in the second round.

The Heat lost Game 1 at home, 100-88, but then swept the Nets out of the playoffs for the second year in a row taking Game 5 at home 106 – 105. The Heat subsequently advanced to their second Eastern Conference Finals in as many years. The Heat opened up the 2006 Eastern Conference Finals in Detroit by facing the Pistons in a rematch of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, in which the top seeded Heat lost Game 7 in a heartbreaker. They immediately stole home court advantage by winning Game 1. Miami lost the second game 92 – 88 after trailing by eighteen at one point, but never surrendered home court advantage. They went home and won both Game 3 (98 – 83) and a decisive Game 4 (89 – 78) at home. The Detroit Pistons then won Game 5 in The Palace of Auburn Hills 91 – 78, but the Heat answered back, winning game 6 (95 – 78) and with it the series (4 – 2) in Miami.

2006 NBA Finals and Championship

After defeating the Detroit Pistons, the Heat advanced to their first NBA Finals in franchise history against the Dallas Mavericks. For the Mavericks, like the Heat, this was also their first NBA Finals appearance.

The Heat were outplayed by the Mavericks in the first two games in Dallas, with the second game being an embarrassing blowout. Things looked worse in Game 3 when the Heat faced a 13-point gap in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter, with Dallas looking to take a commanding 3 – 0 lead in the series. Led by Dwyane Wade, who single handedly dismantled the Mavericks after falling 0-2 by leading the Heat to a 98-96 comeback in game 3 and after that he never looked back, the Heat were able to make an incredible comeback victory to salvage the series. Similar success came in Game 4, when the Miami Heat once again beat the Mavericks with a combined team effort. The Miami Heat were able to establish their ability to play under pressure in Game 5, which went into overtime. Nevertheless, the heroic effort of Wade with his 43 points, including the game tying basket and clutch overtime free throws, propelled the Heat to within one victory of their first championship in franchise history.

Interestingly, the third consecutive victory at home placed the Heat in the rare company of home teams who have swept the middle three games since the NBA switched to the 2 – 3 – 2 format for the finals in 1985. The only team to have previously accomplished that feat were the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals.

On June 20, Game 6, the Heat took the NBA title in Dallas, winning the series four games to two. In winning the series, the Heat became only the third team in NBA history to win the final series after being down 0 – 2, following the 1969 Boston Celtics and the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers. The Heat overcame a miserable start with a 14-point gap to wear down the Mavericks, and lead by one point (49 – 48) at the half-time buzzer. Again, Wade played a vital role, powering the Heat to a late lead. He was helped by an impressive five blocks by Alonzo Mourning (the Heat had over 10 team blocks in the game even though they were averaging a little over 2 blocks in the series) and clutch shooting by James Posey, who drained a crucial three which put the Heat ahead by six with 3 minutes to go. Surprisingly, the Mavericks were down only three with a few seconds to go after a pair of missed free-throws by Dwyane Wade. However, Dallas would be put to rest after Wade captured the rebound, fittingly ending the game by tossing the ball in the air after a missed three-point shot attempt by Jason Terry. Wade would go on to win the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award.

The championship proved all the more poignant for Miami's veteran superstars Alonzo Mourning, Gary Payton, and Antoine Walker who had never before won an NBA championship. Mourning and Payton both re-signed with the Heat for the 2006-07 season, wanting to win another championship. The championship marked the seventh win for Coach Pat Riley (fifth as a head coach), and fourth title to Shaquille O'Neal, both of whom fulfilled their promise to the citizens of Miami in 1995 (when Riley first came to Miami and said he "envisioned a parade on Biscayne Boulevard") and in July 2004 (when Shaq first came to Miami and vowed to "bring the title home"). Shaq also promised after the win to win the NBA championship again in 2007, if and only if Dwyane Wade were present and healthy for the ride through the playoffs.

2006-07 Season

The Heat got off to a poor start in the 2007 season, losing to the Chicago Bulls by 42 points (66-108), the worst home loss in team history and worst margin of defeat for a defending champion on opening day in NBA history. Shaquille O'Neal played the first few games for the Heat then missed over thirty games with a right knee injury. Key members of the Heat's championship run last season, particularly Antoine Walker and Gary Payton, were fortunately finding themselves on the bench more often at the expense of the Heat's exciting young duo of Jason Kapono and Dorell Wright.

The first half of the Heat's season was full of misfortune. Coach Riley took an indefinite leave, Dwyane Wade briefly injured his right wrist, and James Posey and Antoine Walker were delisted after failing a body mass exam.

Matters improved. Rothstein, the Heat's original head coach, returned on an interim basis. Both Posey and Walker were reinstated. Former Heat star Eddie Jones re-signed with the team after being released by the Memphis Grizzlies. O'Neal returned to play in January. Riley resumed his duties as head coach at the start of the second half of the season.

Unfortunately, on February 21, in a game against the Houston Rockets, Wade dislocated his left shoulder and had to leave in a wheelchair. Shortly after the injury, Wade announced that he would opt for rehabilitation instead of surgery, with the hope of returning to the lineup for the playoffs. The rehab was successful enough that Wade returned to the Heat on April 9, 2007, for a game against the Charlotte Bobcats. Wade was visibly rusty, and said that he didn't have his "legs back yet."

After Wade's injury, many predicted the Heat would fail even to make the playoffs. Those predictions were quickly dismissed as the Heat surged, winning 11 out of 14 games at one point. In that time, Miami posted a nine-game winning streak (defeating such teams as the Pistons, Wizards, Bulls and Jazz), in addition to extending a home winning streak to 14. Shaquille O'Neal was a primary cause for the Heat's resurgence, playing his best basketball of the season and serving as a focal point of the offense. Having a roster chock full of veterans and former All-Stars also had a notable benefit in dealing with the loss of Dwyane Wade. Miami was able to post a 16-7 record without its star guard and, in the process, the Heat were able to win a third consecutive Southeast Division title.

Shortly after Wade returned, Shaquille O' Neal's grandfather had died, causing him to miss two games. Additionally, Udonis Haslem and Gary Payton were bit by the injury bug; Haslem with a groin aggravation and Payton with a calf injury that will sideline him for two to three weeks. The Heat finished the regular season with a 44-38 record and faced the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the 2007 NBA Playoffs, to whom they lost 4-0 in the best of seven series. Miami Heat became the first defending champion since 1957 to get swept in the first round in the following season. It was also the first four-game playoff series sweep suffered in Miami Heat history.

Season-by-season records

Season	W	L	%	Playoffs	Results
Miami Heat
1990 – 91	24	58	.293
1991 – 92	38	44	.463	Lost First Round	Chicago 3, Miami 0
1992 – 93	36	46	.439
1993 – 94	42	40	.512	Lost First Round	Atlanta 3, Miami 2
1994 – 95	32	50	.390
1995 – 96	42	40	.512	Lost First Round	Chicago 3, Miami 0
1996 – 97	61	21	.744	Won First Round Won Conference Semifinals Lost Conference Finals	Miami 3, Orlando 2 Miami 4, New York 3 Chicago 4, Miami 1
1997 – 98	55	27	.671	Lost First Round	New York 3, Miami 2
1998 – 99*	33	17	.660	Lost First Round	New York 3, Miami 2
1999 – 2000	52	30	.634	Won First Round Lost Conference Semifinals	Miami 3, Detroit 0 New York 4, Miami 3
2000 – 01	50	32	.610	Lost First Round	Charlotte 3, Miami 0
2001 – 02	36	46	.439
2002 – 03	25	57	.305
2003 – 04	42	40	.512	Won First Round Lost Conference Semifinals	Miami 4, New Orleans 3 Indiana 4, Miami 2
2004 – 05	59	23	.720	Won First Round Won Conference Semifinals Lost Conference Finals	Miami 4, New Jersey 0 Miami 4, Washington 0 Detroit 4, Miami 3
2005 – 06	52	30	.634	Won First Round Won Conference Semifinals Won Conference Finals Won NBA Finals	Miami 4, Chicago 2 Miami 4, New Jersey 1 Miami 4, Detroit 2 Miami 4, Dallas 2
2006-07	44	38	.537	Lost First Round	Chicago 4, Miami 0
2007-08	0	0	.000
Totals	756	770	.495
Playoffs	53	53	.500	1 Championship

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