In the summer of 2010, LeBron James made the decision to leave his hometown team, the Cleveland Cavaliers. The All-Star was already regarded as the best player in the league and even dragged a terrible team to the Finals a few years ago. However, after the Cavaliers could not give him a good supporting cast, James decided to leave.
Seemingly all the teams in the NBA put in a bid for his service. However, James made the controversial decision to join two All-Stars, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, in Miami. With that, the three men created one of the most iconic Big Three teams of all time, they were also nicknamed the ‘Heatles’.
10 LeBron James Joins The Team On TV
LeBron James became an unrestricted free agent on July 1st, 2010. His free agency period was one of the biggest stories in sports, as it’s not every day that the best player in a league becomes a free agent. ESPN felt how big the story was, and approached James about making a one-hour special about his decision.
The special was dubbed ‘The Decision’ and was filmed at ESPN headquarters. Halfway through the special, James announced that he was heading to South Beach and signing with the Miami Heat. The show got huge ratings, although some bashed the NBA star for making a spectacle for his signing. In response, many noted that James did not get paid for the program, and all the proceeds went to charity.
9 Miami Threw A Party To Celebrate Their New Team
With the signing of LeBron James and the trade of Chris Bosh now being official, the team decided to celebrate. Just two days after the former MVP put pen to paper, they had a literal party featuring their new big three at their home arena.
During the party, James took to the microphone to claim that the team would be a dynasty and that they could win as many as seven championships. This party, combined with The Decision, led the team to become the most hated in the NBA.
8 The Big Three Struggled At First
It’s hard to put into perspective, but LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh were all viewed as the top ten NBA players when they began playing together in 2010. Expectations were sky-high, as a situation like this hadn’t happened before .
Shockingly, they didn’t get off to a great start as expected. Instead, the Miami Heat struggled badly to start the 2010 season. Through their first 17 games, the team had a 9-8 record, and James was struggling as he admitted he was playing emotionally.
7 They Lost Their First NBA Finals
Although they started the season poorly, the Miami Heat turned things around. They recovered from their poor start to finish their first season together as the second seed in the East, with the expectation that they would win a championship.
However, that didn’t happen. After coasting their way to the Finals, the Heat met the Dallas Mavericks led by Dirk Nowitzki. Despite the Big Three being heavily favored, they were upset in six games, as James especially struggled.
6 They Improved During The Lockout
Following the 2010 NBA season, the league had a lockout. The Big Three were taken off the court due to ongoing talks between the player’s association and the league. This resulted in the season being postponed.
While many players might have chosen to just take a longer vacation, the Big Three, and especially LeBron James, didn’t see it that way. Spurred by his terrible Finals performance and loss, the former MVP spent the entire lockout working on his shooting, even enlisting Hakeem Olajuwon to help him in the post.
5 The Big Three Faced A New Big Three In The Finals
The 2011 NBA season started on Christmas Day, and the Miami Heat were looking for redemption. The Big Three were all in their physical prime around this time, and it showed. They dominated their way through the East to make the Finals for the second straight year.
There, they met the Oklahoma City Thunder, led by their own aspiring Big Three of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden. While the younger players did their best, the Heat got them out of there in five games, handing the Miami crew their first ring together.
4 Their First Battle With The San Antonio Spurs
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After defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Miami Heat finally got the monkey off their back. However, the relief did not last for long, as they had to recover and try and defend their championship status the following year. It wasn’t easy.
For the third straight year, the Miami Heat made the Finals, where they met the San Antonio Spurs. This series went on to be one of the greatest NBA Finals ever, as the two teams went back and forth for seven games. Games six, and seven, were especially crazy. However, it wound up being the Heat who won their second straight ring.
3 The Big Three Falls Apart
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They had won two rings in a row, and everything was looking great for the Miami Heat. However, everything came crashing down in 2013, as the team began to decline. James was clearly in his prime, but Wade began to slow down as injuries took their toll, and the same went for Bosh.
Despite that, they were able to make it to the Finals. To top it off, they had a rematch with the San Antonio Spurs, which excited fans given that their previous series was one of the best in league history. However, the rematch wasn’t exciting. The Heat got dominated and lost in five painful games.
2 LeBron James Headed Back To Cleveland
Following the loss to the San Antonio Spurs, LeBron James became a free agent. It was assumed that the multiple-time MVP would return to the Heat, and end his career there. However, it seems that James saw the writing on the wall.
In a shocking move, James decided not only to leave but to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. This move was extremely well-received, especially in contrast to The Decision. Meanwhile, Bosh and Wade stayed in Miami, but not for long. Within two seasons, both men were either retired or gone from the Heat.
1 They Ushered In The Superteam Era
The Big Three in Miami wasn’t the first superteam in NBA history, not by a long shot. However, after James and others made the decision to team up, it made it easier for other stars to do the same. Months after their decisions, the Los Angeles Lakers formed a superteam of their own.
However, the biggest move is that this directly led to the Golden State Warriors superteam featuring Kevin Durant years later. The MVP reportedly felt safe in his decision, given that James felt comfortable enough to deal with the hate to form the Big Three in Miami. Out of all the contributions that the Miami Heat had, their making superteams more popular was the biggest one.