MIAMI _ To Erik Spoelstra you can stay on point and have a little fun, as well. So, yes, the Miami Heat coach saw nothing wrong with his team indulging in the "Vice Nights" formal rollout at Friday night's game against the Indiana Pacers at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Over the past week, the Heat had unveiled the new jerseys, court design and pregame introduction video. Those presentations were handled by Heat Chief Marketing officer Michael McCullough and his staff.
Friday, though, had Spoelstra's players involved, in the updated colors of a Pat Riley operation that still puts the ultimate priority on the game itself.
"Look," Spoelstra said, "when Pat took over this organization it became about, 'hardest working, best conditioned, most professional.' You could add, 'hippest, most fun.' He wouldn't like that stuff, but we're always on the front edge of cool things.
"It's fun for the players. It's fun for the fans. It creates an excitement. Michael and his staff are always reinventing themselves, similar to how we try to do it. And the business side mirrors what we're trying to do, always trying to be the best at what you do."
In addition to the pastel colors that were part of last season's initial "Vice" jerseys, the update includes further homages to the team's first home, Miami Arena.
For power forward Udonis Haslem, who was raised in Miami, it is a touch that adds to the nostalgia of having watched Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway, among others, play a few blocks east on 8th Street.
"I didn't have as great a seats as I have now at the games," he said of the since-razed arena. "I definitely remember those old games and being there and watching Zo and Tim and guys that came before me.
"I could keep going on _ Harold Miner, Rony Seikaly _ all those guys that had an opportunity to play on that Miami logo spelled in cursive and all that stuff going across. I remember like it was yesterday. So, for me, it's a cool experience to have a chance to live out my dream."
Haslem's No. 40 proved to be particularly popular when the jerseys went on sale at the turn of midnight Friday.
"When I woke us this morning a lot of people were telling me how crazy it was last night and how my jersey sold out," he said. "So it's all love and I appreciate it. It's an amazing experience."
And a keepsake Haslem is glad to own.
"Once again, when you thought last year couldn't get any better, it got better this year," he said. "Black is one of my favorite colors."
Guard Wayne Ellington was particularly taken by the court design.
"Oh man, the floor is beautiful," he said.
