Round-Two of the Miami HEATs version of streetball, titled Street HEAT drew rave reviews on Friday at the basketball courts of Jose Marti Park in Miami. HEAT players Lamar Odom and Rafer Alston thrilled the crowd with an array of free-styling and open court basketball skills.
Today was all about having fun and entertaining the kids, said Odom. Playground basketball is all about having fun and hopefully the people that came out this afternoon will get excited and make their way to the arena this season.
The event kicked off with a spirited game of H-O-R-S-E between Odom and Alston, where the object of the game is to create a shot that your opponent cannot duplicate in an alternating format. Alston, known more his quickness and dribbling expertise, dazzled the crowd with his pinpoint bank shots and over the shoulder baskets, while Odom relied on his size to produce a few thunderous and acrobatic slam-dunks.
This was a tough game of horse, said Alston. Lamar had
the advantage, because he can dunk the basketball, so I had to do some things that the big-fella could not come up with.
Odom stands at 6-10, while Alston stands at 6-1. Alston won the game, but Odom was the crowd favorite.
I made sure the fans were on my side before the game started, said Odom. I knew that Rafer was going to start doing all of his And 1 tricks on me, so I wanted to make sure I could win the fan vote.
The HEAT Xtreme Team, HEAT Dance Team and Burnie, the HEAT mascot also treated spectators at the park to live performances with chances to win HEAT prizes and receive autographs on a one of a kind Lamar vs Rafer postcard.
David Zarco, a 14-year-old Miami native, who came out to the park dressed in a replica HEAT uniform said the experience at the park was something he could not miss.
As long as I can remember, Ive been the biggest HEAT fan around, no matter how bad people have said the team has been and thats why I came today, said Zarco. Ive always said to them to keep the faith and they (HEAT) will be good and I think they will make the playoffs this year.
David added that his family has season tickets and that he missed only two HEAT games last season either in person or on television and he let it be known who his favorite player was on the team.
Out of all the players I have seen, I think Caron Butler is my favorite. I think he is going to be amazing; especially after the rookie season he had.
Davids friend, who is also 14 but wanted to be referred to as Tal W., expressed similar thoughts about the HEAT and why he came out to the event.
I came out because David really wanted to come, said Tal. People say this is not a basketball town, but I think it is starting to be one with Odom and Rafer and we have a new feeling about this team.