It was announced on Tuesday that the Miami Heat have brought back Udonis Haslem, not as a player, but in a front office role as Vice President of Basketball Development. As the team is currently on a road trip as they face the Atlanta Hawks Saturday, Haslem was seen practicing with the players.
Haslem spoke to the media after Friday's practice all sweaty to talk about what he wants to see out of himself when taking this new job. Part of that is “maximizing” his own abilities according to The Miami Herald's Anthony Chiang.
“Kind of figuring out what the role will look like,” Haslem said. “I want to make sure I maximize my talents as a person, and I want to make sure that I give the most I can to the organization. So I don’t want to just be put in one position. I want to be able to move around a little bit and help everywhere I can.”
What Haslem's responsibilities are
It's important for Haslem to be as hands on possible as he described, which isn't a far cry to what he's been doing for the Heat organization for the past 20 seasons. He has always been the vocal leader in the locker room and now that translates to his new role.
The role is described as “bing a resource to the coaching staff, mentoring both HEAT and Skyforce players as well as representing the organization in the community and in business endeavors” per Miami's press release. Haslem said that one of his priorities is further learning about the role and the business side of it.
“First and foremost, being connected to these guys, the development of these guys, being a champion before you become a champion, habits, professionalism and things like that,” Haslem said. “Second, being a part of the organization at the higher level, understanding how the business part works. Just sitting down at the table with Micky [Arison], Pat [Riley] and Nick [Arison] and those guys and just understanding how the organization that I’ve been working for 20 years.”
Haslem wanting to know the “behind the scenes” of the Heat
For Haslem, getting to this point was always a goal for him. Besides giving it all to his team on the court, he was also fascinated by what happens “behind the scenes.”
“I always wanted to understand how that stuff works,” Haslem said. “I always wanted to be a part of that stuff at a higher level. Not just showing up, shaking hands, kissing babies. But really understand what goes on behind the scenes with events and the partnerships and all the things we’re connected to in the city of Miami and just around the world. For me, I’ve been working in this organization for 20 years. I understand the locker room, I understand the culture. Now it’s trying to understand the business part.”
A seamless fit for Miami and Haslem
There's no doubt that the role fits exactly to what Haslem has been doing as a player and it should be a seamless transition for him. He even made the funny comparison that now he gets “paid to critique and complain.”
“I’m a very ambitious person and everything that I’m involved in are things that are personal to me,” Haslem said. “So it allows me to be the best version of myself. I love watching basketball and talking basketball all day. It’s hard to watch a game at home because I start critiquing and complaining. So now I can get paid to critique and complain. And just being in the locker room with these guys, that’s who I am, that’s what I am. Moving the needle.”
There is no net negative to this move, it was inevitable that Haslem would be back with the organization after he retired from playing earlier this year. The team will need his leadership as they face the Hawks this Saturday, trying to win their fourth straight game.
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