Remember when the Miami Heat sucked? Good golly, did they suck. This was a team so horrible they didn't get a single win until the 18th game of their inaugural 1988-89 season. In fact, the team's all-time record had never been above .500. Yep, when taking into consideration every single regular-season and postseason game the team has ever played, overall, this was a losing franchise. Until now! After the Heat's win Tuesday night against the Indiana Pacers, their all-time record is exactly .500.
Yep, the Heat have won just as many games as they've lost. To be winners, all they have to do is beat the Cleveland Cavaliers (of course, sorry, Cleveland) this Friday. It took them only 24 friggin' years.
It didn't help the fact much that the team started its first season with a .183 record. They didn't have a season record above .500 until their sixth year.
To put that in perspective, the Florida Marlins had won a World Series by their fifth season (a record for a franchise team since eclipsed by the Arizona Diamondbacks). The Miami Dolphins won their first Super Bowl in their perfect seventh season (that would still be an NFL record if it weren't for the fact that the Baltimore Ravens are considered a franchise team and not a continuation of the original Cleveland Browns).
By comparison, the poor Miami Heat had to wait 17 seasons to snatch their first title, and 24 to reach the .500 mark for the first time. In case you're wondering, the Dolphins still have a .573 all-time record. The Marlins are at .479.
Follow Miami New Times on Facebook and Twitter @MiamiNewTimes.
