The Miami Heat are on the brink of elimination in the 2023 NBA Finals. It's a place not unfamiliar to the elder statesman of the team Udonis Haslem.

Haslem was a member of all three Heat title teams. He was also there for the three years they made the NBA Finals and lost. The juxtaposition of euphoria and misery becomes instant the moment the season's final buzzer sounds and the winner is etched into NBA history.

“Winning a championship will be the hardest thing you ever do,” said Haslem with the Heat staring down a 3-1 deficit, via Tim Reynolds. “People only talk about the parade & holding up the trophy. They don’t talk about the journey, the sleepless nights, the frustration, the tears, the pain. They don’t talk about that (stuff).”

There's shared pain and frustration from both sides in order to just make it to the sport's grandest stage. The Nuggets and Heat have both faced doubters and different levels of adversity this season and beyond leading up to this point.

But once a winner is declared, only one team has their grief turned to validation. One team gets the banner, the recognition, the parade, and all the legacy points that come with being the last team standing once the confetti rains down on the NBA Finals.

If the Heat fail to come back from the 3-1 hole they find themselves in, the questions will pour in on what's next for the boys from South Beach. The journey, sleepless nights, and shared frustration Udonis Haslem highlights will continue.