It’s the end of a special and glorious era for basketball in South Beach.
Udonis Haslem, who spent an incredible 20 seasons with the Miami Heat, announced in an Instagram post on Friday that he’s officially retiring. Haslem spent his entire career with the organization and won NBA championship rings in 2006, 2012 and 2013.
Haslem, who turned 43 years of age last month, entered 2022-23 as the oldest player in the NBA. The next oldest was Andre Iguodala (40 next January) by a large margin of four years. Iguodala is now the oldest active player with Haslem retired, followed by LeBron James (39 in December).
The 6-foot-7 forward was a standout at Florida but went undrafted in 2002. The Heat wound up signing him in the 2003 offseason, and it turned out to be one of the best moves in the history of the franchise.
Haslem was a valuable role player for a Miami team that rose to prominence in the 2000s behind the dynamic duo of legends Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal. Haslem was a key part of the Heat squad that won the franchise’s first title in 2006.
Miami reached an incredible seven NBA Finals (2006, 2011-2014, 2020 and 2023) during Haslem’s career. They won it all in 2006, 2012 and 2013, with James, Wade and Chris Bosh headlining the core that won back-to-back titles.
