This is simply not true. Fans don't hate teams because of success, i'm sorry to break it to you. If this were the case, teams like the Spurs would be hated by tons. Listen, I am telling you from experience and from seeing that fan base every day. My father has had season tickets with the Heat for years. I was there when they won their first championship with Wade and I have been to a very high amount of regular season games. Before Lebron James showed up, that stadium was empty as hell. There were no fans there and the amount of time that franchise spent trying to get people into the games was comical. They would give out free t-shirts, they would make some nights "ladies nights" where all women drank a certain amount for free. They would give out free food to certain sections of the stadium in a drawing. It was very sad to see. By looking at the attendance numbers, you see none of that. They are highly skewed because those numbers are based on tickets purchased, not the rotating click at the front gate. When tickets are being sold for $20, you better believe a lot of people are buying them. More than half of them were for fans of the opposing team.
Cavaliers believe they have a "real" shot at signing LeBron James: "After more than two years of planning, the Cleveland Cavaliers believe they have LeBron James legitimately listening to their pitch to leave the Miami Heat and return to his home state in free agency, according to sources close to the process. There has yet to be a firm indication that James actually is ready to leave Miami after four years and two championships with the Heat, but sources told ESPN.com that the four-time MVP is increasingly considering the Cavaliers as an option as he moves into the final stages of deciding which team to sign his next contract with. A critical face-to-face meeting looms with Heat president Pat Riley on a day to be determined this week, sources confirmed Sunday night, so that James can hear the Hall of Famer's plans for the Heat's roster. But James' agent, Rich Paul, has already sat down with Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert in what is regarded as the first formal step toward trying to shrink the gulf between James and Gilbert after the ocean of hard feelings stemming from James' departure from Cleveland in 2010 to sign with the Heat. Sources say that the Cavs' pitch made to Paul last week -- which they also hope to make this week to James in their own face-to-face meeting -- revolves around Kyrie Irving and the other young prospects they have, in addition to the numerous options Cleveland possesses to add to the roster over the next year. It is the second part of this pitch the Cavs hope will be the key selling point in getting James to choose them. While several teams like the Heat, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets have cap space to make moves this summer, the Cavs hope to show James how they have collected and created tools to continue adding into the next few years. The Cavs also believe they have made the greatest move yet this summer, convincing Irving to sign a five-year maximum contract extension in the first few hours of free agency. With No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins under control for the next five seasons as well, the Cavs are pitching youth and roster stability to James, who played on one of the oldest teams in the league last season. The team also potentially owns three first-round picks in the 2015 draft, including the Heat's pick if they fall outside the top 10. They also have the Memphis Grizzlies' pick if it falls between Nos. 6 and 14 and their own pick. The Cavs believe they can use these as assets in potential trades to further upgrade the roster if James will come aboard. The Cavs also made an unheralded trade late on draft night that has potential to become valuable next year, an aspect they intend to explain to James: as part of a draft-pick swap, the Cavs traded Alonzo Gee for Brendan Haywood in a deal that will be announced after July 10. In addition to having size the Cavs need, Haywood has an unorthodox contract created when he was waived via the amnesty clause by the Dallas Mavericks. Haywood will be on the Cavs' books for $2.2 million this season but has a $10.5 million deal for the following season that isn't guaranteed until Aug. 1, 2015. This is one of the most unique contracts in the league, and the Cavs could use it in a straight trade or a sign-and-trade to add a major free agent next summer, even though they aren't positioned to have cap space. The Cavs still have several hurdles to overcome. Rival teams are skeptical that James and Gilbert will be able to patch up their differences in the wake of James' televised "announcement" and Gilbert's subsequent open letter that attacked James' character and got him fined by then-commissioner David Stern. There has been a cooling of the tension between the parties in recent years, but James still harbors some ill feelings that both would have to attempt to settle before any partnership could be renewed, sources said. On a more basic level, the Cavs currently don't have the cap space to sign James to the $20.7 million maximum contract he is looking for. They have some players on non-guaranteed deals they could waive but will want to keep Anderson Varejao, who has a partially guaranteed deal and is the lone holdover on the team from James' years in Cleveland. The easiest way to get near the needed space would be to offload the $6.3 million salary of guard Jarrett Jack, and the Cavs have been in trade talks involving Jack for several weeks, sources told ESPN.com."
WOW!!! Cleveland has Kyrie Irving locked up for 5 years, Wiggins locked up for 5 years, and they potentially have 3 first round picks next year. Holy hell!!! LeBron, Wtf are you waiting for. Talk about stability and youth
I went to game 3 and 4 of the ECF, the atmosphere was amazing .In2008 no one was saying they hated Miami, they were irrevelant and no one outside of Heat fans cared about them. As soon as they returned to revelance, we startex to hear "You gotta understand people don't hate the team, they hate the fanbase" But no one said this when they first came to existence in the 1988 or when they were awful. The fanbase has improved sincd 2006, isn't good now, but it has improved. At least you were able to back up your statement since you've been to Heat games, but it's ridiculous to see people who have never been to a Heat game, say I hate that team because of their fans. That just makes me think that people hate the, because of the sucess they have achieved. I may be wrong, but that's what it seems like to me.
People only hate Miami fans when they are winning, because there is no fanbase when they aren't. Biggest pile of frontrunning crap fanbase in the country, and this goes for all sports hosted there.
Heat fan base is ass! I felt bad for the heat in that game 6 comeback last year in the finals bc all they're fans left early that game. In the FINALS! Pathetic
And this year they booed their team in the finals in a game that might have been the last time LeBron James wears a Heat uniform. Fuckin pathetic.
And you came to that conclusion after you met two Heat fans, but that's false. Are there bandwagoners yes, but that comes with almst team when you're winning.
Yeah that was bad, but the Pacer fans did too game two ecf. I'll try to find you a link, but you guys are acting like they are only fanbase that does this. I never said that Miami has a good fanbase, I said it's not the worst fanbase in sports.
When the Thunder smacked the Knicks in MSG on Christmas day, they booed too.... is the heat fanbase good nope, but stop acting like they are the only fanbase to leave games arly, and boo the team. Would I have done it no, but lets just stop acting like they are the only fanbase in the aNBA to this stuff.
It may be the worst. You know how many "heat" fans opted out with LeBron? They're just waiting to see where they will take their talents next. I mastered the art of rooting for a player without rooting for the team they are playing for lol. Heat fans need to learn to do the same to avoid having a new team every few years
The Heat fans booed a team that has the best player on the planet, had been to 4 finals in a row, and had won 2 championships the previous two years.
There are bandwagoners everywhere, so please stop with this. How many heat fans have met over the past 4 years, bandwagon and real. I'm sure How can you call a whole fanbase bandwagoners. That's ridiculous, it's stupid to call a whole fanbase or 90% bandwagon.
Dude, it's common knowledge that Miami sports fans disappear in hard times, you are pathetically trying to pass that off as an urban legend, but it's the fucking truth. Your Miami fanbase is a bunch of weak-willed faggots.
I never called the entire fan base bandwagoners. If you go back to when I was posting on here during the finals, I specifically said there are quite a few hard core Heat fans out there. Of course there are. I won't even describe the morons that call themselves fans in that city.
Correction some Heat fan.As I said I wouldn't have done it , but some of you act like every Heat fan does this. Knick fans are just as bad as the Heat, when it comes to stuff like leaving early and booing the team
