After 20 seasons in the NBA, all of them with the Miami Heat, big man Udonis Halsem has finally decided to retire.
As a sign of his reach throughout South Florida, Major League Baseball’s Miami Marlins will honor Haslem on Sept. 7 when they host the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fans will be able to receive a shirt honoring the big man, and some of the proceeds will go to his foundation.
Udonis Haslem will be honored by the Miami Marlins on Thursday night, Sept. 7 when they face the Dodgers.
Fans who purchase a special ticket will also get a Haslem shirt.
$3.05 from each sale will benefit UD’s foundation. pic.twitter.com/j5PHZw21Fw
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) August 28, 2023
Throughout his long career, Haslem has been there and done that, and he has been a bridge that has connected multiple eras of Heat basketball.
After he went undrafted in 2002, they brought him in following a season with a pro league in France. It was also Dwyane Wade’s rookie season, and Haslem quickly established himself as a reliable role-playing power forward.
Shaquille O’Neal arrived via trade the following season, and Haslem became a starter, forming the nucleus of a team that would win the NBA championship during the 2005-06 campaign by overcoming Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.
As the Heat fell hard over the next couple of years, Haslem’s productivity increased, and he averaged a career-high 12.0 points, as well as 9.0 rebounds a game during the 2007-08 season.
When LeBron James and Chris Bosh came to town in 2010, Haslem gradually saw his playing time decrease, but he was still a vital part of a team that went to the Finals four straight times and took home back-to-back world titles in 2012 and 2013.
Over the last several years, he has barely played and has served as more of an unofficial assistant coach, especially ever since Jimmy Butler arrived in 2019. But Haslem’s words have carried a tremendous amount of weight, and when he has spoken, his teammates have listened.
He announced his retirement just a month ago, but he has already started the next chapter of his life by purchasing the Rebote Renegades, a team that plays in the World Jai-Alai League.
