From undrafted to Miami Heat icon, Udonis Haslem ‘couldn’t have scripted it any better’

Udonis Haslem wasn’t always sure this is how he wanted the final seasons of his playing career to go. Just five years ago, he made it known he wanted to play and threatened to take his game overseas to get game minutes if the Miami Heat continued to leave him out of the rotation.

“There’s a selfless part of me that gives, gives, gives, and then there’s a part of me where I’ve got to start thinking about myself sometimes,” Haslem said during the 2018 offseason. “So, that’s the dilemma for me. I’ve got to start thinking about myself.”

The way Haslem ended up handling this situation shaped the final phase of his NBA career, as he opted to remain with the Heat for the next five seasons and take on an even bigger leadership role while rarely playing in games.

“It’s just who I am,” Haslem said of that mind-set shift. “Regardless of how I feel emotionally, I’m always going to do what’s best for the team. I’m always going to do what it takes to win. Even the next year, I probably wanted to have some opportunities to play. And the next year after that, I probably wanted to have some opportunities to play. But when you put me in a situation, whatever that situation is, I’m going to make the best of it and find out a way to win.

“That’s all I’ve done as a starter, as a role player and as a guy who came off the bench and as a guy who barely played at all. I just figured out a way to win.”

The result is arguably the most unique NBA career ever, as the Heat’s regular-season finale against the Orlando Magic on Sunday (1 p.m., Bally Sports Sun) at Kaseya Center marks the final regular-season game of Haslem’s career. He will retire at the end of the season after 20 seasons in the league.

How Heat’s Udonis Haslem became Mr. 305: ‘I’m literally living a dream’

Haslem, who was born in North Shore Medical Center in Miami and grew up in Liberty City before leading Miami High to two state championships in 1997 and 1998, has spent his entire NBA career with the Heat and currently holds the longest streak by any active player with only one team in the league.

Haslem is only the third player to spend an entire NBA career lasting at least 20 seasons with one team. The others on that short list are Dirk Nowitzki (21 seasons with Dallas Mavericks) and Kobe Bryant (20 seasons with Los Angeles Lakers), and Haslem is the only one to do it in his hometown.

“I couldn’t have scripted it any better,” said Haslem, who turns 43 on June 9. “There’s no way I envisioned anything even close to this. But I’ve always identified as a man who’s had something to prove. I’ve always identified as a guy who had to work 10 times as hard just to get a seat at the table. I think just that work ethic, that mind-set, that drive has brought me to this point in my life and my career. Just continuing to be like that has brought me here.”

A NEW WHY

But Haslem doesn’t know whether he would have reached this point without Bam Adebayo, who was drafted by the Heat with the 14th overall pick in 2017 just one year before Haslem considered the possibility of taking his career overseas.

Adebayo reminds Haslem of himself on and off the basketball court, and that’s what initially intrigued Haslem. They have since developed a very close relationship, with Haslem spending the last few years preparing Adebayo to be the next in a distinguished line of Heat leaders.

“I saw a kid who had a lot of athleticism but was shy,” Haslem said. “He just needed a little bit of guidance and leadership in this league, but had all the talent in the world. So it was a why. I think in this life, you always have to have something bigger. You always have to have your why. What pushes you to go beyond and above?

“It became something bigger. Bam was here. This is the next guy. Our relationship has blossomed into not just teammates, but mentor, uncle, brother, whatever. There are just so many different things. So yeah, I think that definitely had something to do with the mindset shift.”

When asked whether he would have lasted 20 NBA seasons without Adebayo in the Heat’s locker room, Haslem gave an honest answer.

“In hindsight, maybe not,” Haslem said. “But you see somebody and you see someone you can move the needle with and how important the culture is with this organization. Up until Bam had come, I hadn’t found anybody. I hadn’t really found anybody. Sourcing and just trying to figure it out, taking applications on who’s next to pass the culture to. We take it seriously. I think on the outside, a lot of people might joke about it. But it’s serious and it’s real.”

Even with Haslem’s NBA career soon coming to an end, it’s still hard for Adebayo to envision a Heat locker room without Haslem in it. The last season that Haslem wasn’t on the Heat’s roster was in 2002-03, when Pat Riley was the head coach and current Heat assistant coaches Malik Allen and Caron Butler were playing for Miami.

“You get so used to having him around, it’s one of those things where you don’t miss it until it’s gone,” Adebayo said. “I feel like that’s when he’s going to be missed most. When he isn’t in the locker room to give us an inspiring speech or something impactful during the middle of adversity in the huddle. He’s always been our spark.”

VALUE ADDED

Riley calls Haslem “probably the predominant player voice ever in the history of this organization.”

Haslem has earned that title through longevity as one of only 10 players to play 20 or more NBA seasons, along with Vince Carter, Robert Parish, Kevin Willis, Kevin Garnett, Nowitzki, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bryant, Jamal Crawford and LeBron James.

Haslem is also just the seventh player in NBA history to appear in a game after his 42nd birthday, joining a list that also includes Nat Hickey, Willis, Parish, Carter, Dikembe Mutombo and Abdul-Jabbar.

But Haslem has also established himself as one of the most important figures in Heat history because he accomplished a lot on the court prior to entering the final phase of his career.

Undrafted out of Florida in 2002, Haslem has played a role on each of the franchise’s three championship teams in 2006, 2012 and 2013 and is the Heat’s all-time leading rebounder. He’s the only undrafted player in NBA history to lead a franchise in total rebounds.

Along with holding the title of the Heat’s all-time leading rebounder, he’s also the team’s all-time leader in offensive and defensive rebounds and also ranks among Miami’s all-time leaders in games played (second), minutes (second) and field goals made (fifth).

“UD, the last three or four years, has been that mentor that we feel is very valuable,” Riley said, “I think that will be part of his legacy. Part of his legacy that will carry on won’t be just that he’s a three-time champion and that he was one of the most grittiest, toughest players in the game ever. But the fact that as a player he can be thought of as a real leader, he’s changed the paradigm in a way of veteran players.”

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra added: “A lot of times if you’re just a savage competitor, it’s just about how you’re going to impact the win and it’s only about if you’re playing and playing the role that you want where you can contribute to winning. That’s UD at his core. But he’s also been able to conquer all these other roles along the way and understand other people’s contributions, where he’s not just so focused on himself. Not many players can strike that balance.”

But because Haslem’s contributions on the court have been minimal in recent seasons, some have questioned whether the roster spot he has continued to occupy is being wasted. He has appeared in just 34 games since the start of the 2018-19 season and has not played in a playoff game since 2016.

“It’s always people outside the NBA. It’s never people in the league,” Haslem said of his detractors. “Even around the league in other teams, they understand my value. Among my peers, I’m respected and I’m accepted and I’m thankful for that. Outside of that, it’s annoying but who cares. People are allowed to have their opinions.

“I would just say this, I would question this to the people who do have those comments: When these guys make mistakes, you always say, ‘How can he make that mistake, what was he thinking? Now you have somebody here to help them and you say, ‘Why is he here? Why don’t he leave?’ What do you want the guys to do? You want them to blow all of their money or you want them to have help? You can’t have both. I’m here helping, I’m moving the needle. We were one shot away from the Finals last year, two years ago we went to the Finals. So clearly, there’s something going on right here. That’s what I will always say. The proof is in the product and how we perform every year.”

WHAT’S NEXT?

Haslem has gone through his own personal issues in recent years, dealing with tragedy behind the scenes that has forced him to think about where he stands in life as he prepares for retirement. His father Johnnie Haslem passed away in August 2021, and his close friend and University of Florida teammate Major Parker died of a heart attack in November.

One of the reasons Haslem even returned for a 20th NBA season is because it’s a milestone his late father wanted him to reach.

But Haslem already has his eye on his next phase of his basketball career, even as he looks to spend more time with his wife, Faith, and three sons, Kedonis, Elijah, and Josiah. He has made it clear on multiple occasions that he hopes to become part of the Heat ownership group led by the father-son duo of managing general partner Micky Arison and chief executive officer Nick Arison.

“That’s a huge focus,” Haslem said of joining Heat ownership. “My focus is on moving the needle at the highest level. I love coaches and I love our coaching staff. Just for me and my dreams and my aspirations and the things I want to do in the city, that’s what makes sense for me.”

Haslem expects his discussions with Heat executives regarding a potential ownership stake to pick up after the season. Money will be part of those conversations, as NBA bylaws say any ownership stake must be for at least 1 percent and that could cost at least $20 million with the the Heat valuated at more than $2 billion.

“It’s something that I would love to have a conversation about when the season is over and just move the needle in that way, as well,” Haslem continued. “I think it’s time. I think you look around the NBA and what’s going on and you look around pro sports overall. You see a guy like Buster Posey, who spent so much time in San Francisco and now he’s in ownership in San Francisco. So you see guys doing it.

“It’s just the next phase for me. I don’t think any of those guys have been with an organization as long as me and have done and moved the needle and sacrificed and just had the connection that I’ve had here. It’s what makes sense for me.”

Haslem noted that he wants to join Heat ownership immediately after retiring because “there’s no sense in taking a year off.”

“I want to win,” he said. “I can’t live in mediocrity, man. It’s no point in sitting at home cheering for the Heat, but I ain’t helping do [anything] about it.”

When asked about Haslem’s future with the organization, Riley said the Heat “want him involved if he wants to be involved in any capacity in the organization.”

“To have that kind of institutional knowledge that he has of this organization, this culture, this team and how he has seen it change in two generations that he’s been in the league. It’s invaluable to have that experience,” Riley said. “He fills out a resume and he goes to any team in the league, he’s going to get hired in a minute. So we haven’t sat down and really talked about that. But whatever it is he wants, how he sees a fit here.”

Whatever happens next, Haslem’s legacy with the Heat is already cemented. He’ll have his No. 40 jersey retired by the organization as soon as next season, and it will hang alongside the five other Heat players who have already earned that honor: Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.

Haslem will be the only player to have his jersey retired by the Heat who hasn’t been elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame and he very likely never will make the Hall of Fame. Instead, Haslem’s number will never be worn again by another Heat player because of what he meant in the locker room, on the bench and in his hometown along with everything he accomplished on the court.

It’s why he has his own section inside the Heat’s home arena, Section 305. It’s why a wall leading into the Heat’s locker room is dedicated to him.

That’s Haslem’s legacy.

“Just a dude that things the right way. A stand-up guy,” Haslem said of how he wants to be remembered as a player. “That’s pretty much it. Just a stand-up guy. A guy that does things the right way even when it’s not easy. A stand-up guy that says the right things even when people don’t want to hear it.”