As the Miami Heat still reels from the disappointing loss to the Detroit Pistons, the new Red City Edition jerseys were announced, but there was also a major change with the court. There was some pushback last season when the Heat debuted the court coinciding with the new “Heat Culture” jerseys that read the following mantra under the baskets of each end of the court:
“The Hardest Working, Best Conditioned, Most Professional, Unselfish, Toughest, Meanest, Nastiest Team in the NBA.”
Besides some little changes to the uniform, a Heat Culture court will be used, but won’t use the mantra. #HeatNation
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) November 14, 2024
📸: @IraHeatBeat https://t.co/HzqumbUW7Z pic.twitter.com/KHUrQ2H4zR
This was a statement created by former coach and current team president Pat Riley, but there were some who called it “cringey” or “tacky,” though the franchise is known for their toughness. However, they will be making the change as a team spokesperson confirmed to ClutchPoints that they took it off to focus on Riley's signature as the Heat named the court after him.
On the other hand, the viral mantra will still be on the jerseys on the right side, which continues on down to the shorts. Still, the change was made internally since they made the announcement earlier this season that the location where Miami plays will be called “Pat Riley Court at Kaseya Center.”
The Heat unveil new City Edition jerseys along with changes to court
The court has not been released as of yet, but it will be sooner rather than later, as the first game featuring it will be next Monday when the Heat take on the Philadelphia 76ers. As mentioned before, the new jerseys were also revealed, which are like the mainly black ones from last season but feature the color red, which closely aligns with the franchise as described by the NBA when they announced it.
“The Miami Heat 2024-25 City Edition Uniform delivers a powerful homage to the fierce spirit of Heat culture, encapsulated in a vivid ‘Blood Red’ base,” the NBA's website wrote. “Rooted in the franchise’s legacy of resilience, ambition and championship glory, this new edition reflects Miami’s unwavering commitment to “Bleed Heat Red.” With its striking design, it honors not only Pat Riley’s transformative leadership but also every historic moment that’s defined Heat basketball.”
“A color flip of the 2023-24 ‘Heat Culture’ jersey, the Miami Heat’s 2024-25 Nike NBA City Edition Jersey retains all the elements of its predecessor, save for the base color: a ‘Blood Red’ hue honoring the transformative, win-at-all-costs mentality of Heat Culture’s architect, Pat Riley,” the NBA wrote on their X, formerly Twitter, account.
The phrase “Heat Culture” and the idea to put it on jerseys last season
There is no doubt that the phrase “Heat Culture” has been repeated many times in relation to the franchise, as when they debuted the original colorway of the jerseys last season, a press release described the term as their motivation.
“HEAT Culture is a set of core shared values, expectations, commitments, and customs that inform how Miami operates as a team and an organization,” the press release said in October of 2023. “This version of the City Edition uniform serves as the embodiment of that philosophy, which maintains the standard of getting 1% better every day.”
“Pat Riley previously said: ‘I set the template for it back in 1995 when I got here – it’s academic. It’s a Culture I think every professional team should start with…however, it’s hard to do that because you have to have the total commitment, absolute total commitment, from players,'” the press release continued. “All former full-time HEAT players not currently on active league rosters will receive their own personalized “HEAT Culture jersey,” including a message signed by Riley, Spoelstra, Andy Elisburg, and Micky and Nick Arison.”
Campaign for “Heat Culture” jerseys received “pushback”
There was definitely some controversy with the original unveiling as some determined touting their culture as a way to demean other teams. However, the “pushback” was real, as said by Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Michael McCullough, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel.
“This is one of the most challenging to be approved,” McCullough said. “There was a lot of pushback.”
“What we have designed is a uniform that has our identity on it. It’s our identity,” McCullough continued. “And it is something that Pat Riley established in 1995 and players thinking that Erik Spoelstra improved upon it. And it has just been our identity as an organization.”
The schedule where the Heat will wear new jerseys
After the mental mistake made by Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra in the loss to the Pistons, a boost of confidence is needed, which the jerseys and court could bring. Miami has been known to bring iconic and great-looking jerseys like the classic editions or even the “Miami Vice” colorways, but even with all that, “Heat Culture” was “woven” through all of them, according to Senior Vice President of Brand and Chief Creative Officer Jennifer Alvarez.
“We’ve always prided ourselves on designing uniforms that push our brand in fun and exciting ways, but this uniform presented a unique creative challenge since it’s been in the works since 1995,” Alvarez said. “HEAT Culture is woven throughout our organization and our success, so it's very exciting to finally see it woven onto a uniform for all to wear proudly.”
Related Miami Heat NewsArticle continues below
At any rate, the new Red City edition jerseys will only be worn for six games, which are the following:
Monday vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Nov. 24 vs. Dallas Mavericks
Nov. 27 at Charlotte Hornets
Dec. 7 vs. Phoenix Suns
Dec. 8 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Dec. 23 at Orlando Magic
In the meantime, the Heat will prepare for another NBA Cup contest against the Indiana Pacers Friday night and after another outing with the same team before they return home Monday for the aforementioned matchup facing Philadelphia. They are 4-6 so far, which puts them 11th in the Eastern Conference.
