1999–2000 Miami Heat season

The 1999–2000 Miami Heat season was the 12th season for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association.^[1] During the off-season, the team signed free agents Otis Thorpe,^[2][3][4] and undrafted rookie point guard Anthony Carter.^[5][6] The Heat played the first two months of the regular season at the Miami Arena, and played their final home game there on December 28, 1999, against the Minnesota Timberwolves; the team then moved into their new arena, the American Airlines Arena on January 2, 2000, and played their first game there against the Orlando Magic.^[7]

The Heat got off to a 15–4 start to the regular season, and later on held a 30–17 record at the All-Star break.^[8] However, Tim Hardaway only played 52 games due to knee injuries,^[9][10][11] and Voshon Lenard was out for the remainder of the season due to a lower abdominal strain after 53 games.^[12][13] At mid-season, the team signed free agent Bruce Bowen, who was previously released by the Chicago Bulls, who acquired him from the Philadelphia 76ers in a three-team trade.^[14][15] The Heat posted a seven-game winning streak between March and April, and finished in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 52–30 record, earning the second seed in the Eastern Conference.^[16]

Alonzo Mourning averaged 21.7 points, 9.5 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game, and was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive year;^[17][18][19] he was also named to the All-NBA Second Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. In addition, Jamal Mashburn averaged 17.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game, and led the Heat with 112 three-point field goals, while Hardaway provided the team with 13.4 points and 7.4 assists per game, Lenard contributed 11.9 points per game off the bench as the team's sixth man, and P.J. Brown provided with 9.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, three-point specialist Dan Majerle contributed 7.3 points and 1.3 steals per game, along with 110 three-point field goals, while Clarence Weatherspoon averaged 7.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game off the bench, and Carter provided with 6.3 points, 4.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game.^[20]

During the NBA All-Star weekend at The Arena in Oakland in Oakland, California, Mourning was selected for the 2000 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Eastern Conference All-Star team.^[21][22][23] Mourning also finished in third place in Most Valuable Player voting, behind Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers, and Kevin Garnett of the Timberwolves,^[24][25] while head coach Pat Riley finished tied in fifth place in Coach of the Year voting.^[25]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2000 NBA playoffs, the Heat faced off against the 7th–seeded Detroit Pistons, a team that featured All-Star forward Grant Hill, All-Star guard Jerry Stackhouse, and Lindsey Hunter. Despite the absence of Hardaway due to his knee injury, the Heat won the first two games over the Pistons at home at the American Airlines Arena. In Game 2, Hill re-injured his ankle sustained from the final month of the regular season, as the Heat defeated the Pistons, 84–82 to take a 2–0 series lead. With Hill out for Game 3, the Heat defeated the Pistons on the road, 91–72 at The Palace of Auburn Hills to win the series in a three-game sweep.^[26][27][28]

In the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, and for the fourth consecutive year, the team faced off against the 3rd–seeded New York Knicks, who were led by All-Star guard Allan Houston, Latrell Sprewell and Patrick Ewing. With the return of Hardaway, and with the series tied at 2–2, the Heat won Game 5 over the Knicks at home, 87–81 at the American Airlines Arena to take a 3–2 series lead.^[29][30][31] However, the Heat lost Game 6 to the Knicks on the road, 72–70 at Madison Square Garden, and then lost Game 7 at the American Airlines Arena, 83–82, thus losing in a hard-fought seven-game series.^[32][33][34]

The Heat finished 13th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 706,725 at the American Airlines Arena during the regular season.^[20][35] Following the season, Mashburn, Brown and Thorpe were all traded to the Charlotte Hornets,^[36][37][38] while Lenard and Mark Strickland were both traded to the Denver Nuggets,^[39][40][41] and Weatherspoon was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a three-team trade.^[42][43][44]

For the season, the Heat changed their primary logo of a flaming basketball going into a hoop, changing the color of the basketball from light red to dark red, and changing the hoop from black to white;^[45] the team also added new uniforms with side panels to their jerseys and shorts.^[46][47] The new uniforms would remain in use until 2009, where they switched the logo to the other leg of their shorts, while the team's new primary logo is still present as of 2026.