Erik Spoelstra’s ex-wife Nikki Sapp reacted to haters saying she fumbled the bag by divorcing her husband before he inked an eight-year contract extension with the Miami Heat.
Spoelstra and Sapp announced in November of 2023 that they finalized their divorce after seven years of marriage.
Spoelstra’s contract — which is worth $120 million over eight years — is the most lucrative coaching contract in league history.
The 53-year-old coached the Heat to an NBA Finals appearance in 2023. While the Heat came up short of an NBA title, as they lost to the Denver Nuggets in five games in the championship series, Miami became the first No. 8 seed to reach the NBA Finals since the New York Knicks did all the way back in 1999.
Fast forward to the 2023-24 regular season, and Spoelstra has coached the Heat to a respectable 21-15 record thus far.
It’s worth noting that the Heat own the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference right now despite the fact that perhaps their best player in Jimmy Butler has missed 12 of the team’s 36 games due to injuries. Plus, he hasn’t taken the court for Miami since the team’s loss to the Utah Jazz late last month.
Spoelstra and the Heat have earned victories in two out of their last three games. They beat the Los Angeles Lakers by 14 points on Jan. 3 and beat the Houston Rockets by seven on Jan. 8.
In between those two victories, the Heat suffered a 16-point road loss to the Phoenix Suns on Jan. 5.
The Heat will try for their third victory over their last four games when they face off against star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on Wednesday. After ending up as just the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference a season ago, the Thunder currently hold the second-best record in the Western Conference, behind only the Minnesota Timberwolves who are 26-10 on the season.