What do Bam Adebayo, Michael Jordan and Dan Marino have in common? They've all had their jerseys numbers honored by the Miami Heat.
On Friday, Oct. 29, Miami will honor Adebayo's No. 13 Olympic jersey ahead of their ESPN clash against the Charlotte Hornets.
Here's why the Heat are honoring Adebayo's Olympic jersey.
Why are the Heat retiring Bam Adebayo's Olympic jersey?
It's become a tradition in Miami for the Heat to honor Olympic Gold Medalist who won the medal while they were a member of the team.
LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway have all been honored by the Heat for winning Olympic Gold. After helping America win its four straight Gold Medal at the 2020 Olympics, Adebayo will be the fifth Heat player to have the honor.
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“I want Miami to think of me as one of the greats to come through the city," Adebayo said prior to the 2020 Tokyo Games via the AP's Tim Reynolds. "I want to be able to warm up and see my name in the rafters.
"A lot of guys don’t get this opportunity, so my goal is just to make sure that I seize this moment and not mess around with it.”
After being cut from the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup team, Adebayo made the Olympic squad just two years later. He averaged 6.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 19.3 minutes per game in Tokyo. His best game came against France when he posted a double-double of 12 points, 10 rebounds in an 83-76 tournament-opening loss. Team USA would rebound and avenge their loss to France in the Gold Medal game two weeks later.
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Serval other players who have played for Miami have won Olympic Gold including, Shaquille O'Neal, Chris Bosh, Andre Iguodala, Ray Allen, Gary Payton, Christian Laettner and current Heat all-star Jimmy Butler, but Olympic banners are reserved for those who have won Gold as a member of the Heat.
What are the Heat's retired numbers?
Aside from the Olympic banners, the Heat have an interesting list of retired numbers that hang in the rafters of the newly named FTX arena.
Chris Bosh's No. 1, Dwyane Wade's No. 3, Tim Hardaway's No. 10, Shaquille O'Neal's No. 32 and Alonzo Mourning's No. 33 are all immortalized by the franchise, which makes sense since all five had tremendous careers as members of the Heat. Two other numbers also hang in the rafters of FTX arena and they have nothing to do with the Heat franchise: Michael Jordan's No. 23 and Dan Marino's No. 13.
At halftime of MJ's final game in Miami as a member of the Wizards in 2003, Pat Riley who was then the Heat's head coach announced the retirement of Jordan's No. 23.
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“In honor of your greatness and for all you’ve done for the game of basketball – and not just the NBA, but for all the fans around the world – we want to honor you tonight and hang your jersey, No. 23, from the rafters,” Riley said. “No one will ever wear No. 23 for the Miami Heat. You’re the best.”
Today in 2003, the Miami Heat retire Michael Jordan’s 23. Oddly enough, he never played for the Heat. It wasn’t until 6 years later that they actually retired a jersey for a past Heat player-Alonzo Mourning’s no. 33. #TodayInSports #HeatTwitter
— TodayInSports (@TodayInSports__) April 11, 2021
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Although Marino's No. 13 Miami Dolphins jersey hangs next to Jordan's, the number isn't officially retired by the franchise. Bam Adebayo currently wears No. 13 for the Heat. Six other players have worn No. 13 for the Heat including Mike Miller, Shabazz Napier and Kendall Gill.
