Miami Heat (#19)

So after leaving Orlando early on Saturday morning, it was a 3 hour drive down to Miami. I would be staying on Miami Beach for 2 nights, and for one day, I even got reasonable weather.

On Sunday afternoon, I arrived at American Airlines Arena and met up with Marcus Crawford, who is the cousin of Shaquille O'Neal.



This game would be the debut of Shawn Marion in a HEAT uniform.

Before the game, he addressed the crowd, thanking them for welcoming him and that he wanted to be a part of the turnaround of the franchise.





The HEAT provided me with some great merchandise to show my support for the team at the game including 3 t-shirts, a flag, noisemaker, and more.



Kobe talking to Michelle Tafoya after the game. It was nationally televised on ABC.



Notice the color changes in the seating



The home court



Quite a bit of Barcardi available inside the arena



Fuegos Grill





Not sure why, but there was a Marino and Jordan jersey in the upper bowl.




A different season ticket holder gets a shout out in each game program.



Player introductions



I haven't seen this before to date. The Cheerstix/Thunderstix were dropped from the ceiling rather than handed out.



Wade asking for an isolation opportunity



Odom at the line



The mascot Burnie



With the dance team



Pau in Lakers colors and Marion the Heat uniform









Radmanovic for 3



Then the HEAT put us a bit closer to the action







Marcus took us down to the arena DJ and I appeared on the jumbotron





This guy on stilts taught me that screams=shirts in Miami.



This arena was one of the nicer facilities in the league. Prime location downtown with an entire shopping complex nearby. Windows throughout the arena allowing fans to see the beautiful scenery outside (namely the Bay), and just a modern feel to all that they were doing.

Marion started a bit slow, but eventually seemed to fit right in and made the HEAT very competitive in a game the the Lakers were expected to win. He finished with 15 points and 14 rebounds.

It seems that I keep saying this at every game I go to, but once again a team had a double digit lead late in the game, only to see it disappear. The Lakers led by 17 in the fourth, but then the HEAT starting hitting 3 pointers, even Mark Blount hit one. The HEAT got within 4, but Pau's height and Kobe's free throw shooting sealed the win 104-94

Wade shooting a much needed 3, but no luck



Arena #19 in the books



One of my favorite promotions at this arena was that every fan in attendance received a "boarding pass" and late in the game, they announced which boarding pass would win a legit ticket. I had hoped my free trip to Nashville would come true, but no luck occurred.

Views from our Miami Beach hotel







A stop at FatBurger



South Beach at night











A sculpture in downtown Miami. It appears to be a broken bowl of oranges scattered all over.



Biscayne Blvd



Holocaust memorial



South Beach



Thanks to Marcus Crawford for arranging all of this for me. Also a thanks to Rosemary Escamilla for offering lodging arrangements for my trip.

If you don't already have high-speed Internet, I recommend getting it before reading my Phoenix post which is coming up next. I say this because my next blog will have more pictures than any other. It will also feature the arrival of "Diesel" in the Valley of the Sun...

Orlando Magic (#18)

Let me start this one out by apologizing for the delay in postings. What you have to understand is that while I'm having fun and achieving a lot, the constant follow-up and planning seriously takes quite the effort. I've been trying to button down the balance of the tour, so I can simply enjoy myself at the final 10 games, but it looks like I'm going to be "working" right up until the end.

Anyways, after a short hiatus, the tour was back in action - this time taking my travels to Florida. I was hoping that I would finally get some good weather, but when I woke up in Orlano, it was cloudy and chilly. Believe me, this was better than the 18 inches of snow I had in Milwaukee the day before, but still depressing.

So I arrived at Amway Arena (I fondly remember it being called the "O-rena" when Shaq came into the league) only about 10 minutes before game time. Traffic to the game was just plain horrendous. Joel Glass was kind enough to give me two free tickets to the game against the Lakers.

The full court during the halftime show



Arena #19 - Orlando Magic



Player intros



Kobe shooting 2.



Orlando came out strong, scoring 44 points in the first quarter, a franchise record.
The Lakers almost had 100 after 3 quarters



Celebrity sightings: Chris Tucker & Tiger Woods



Jameer Nelson shooting over Pau



Orlando Magic mascot "Stuff" the Magic dragon









A J.J. Reddick sighting



Dwight Howard in the middle



Lamar Odom lunges to block a shot



This was my first look at Pau Gasol in a Lakers' uniform. It seems as if it took he and Kobe little time to adjust as both scored more than 30 points. Strangely enough however, Kobe had more rebounds (10) than did Pau (9).

This was also my first opportunity to see Dwight Howard, who was also incredible, but had his playing time limited with foul trouble throughout.

In a game that was offensive-oriented throughout, the teams exchanged several leads. The Lakers led by 14 in the thrid, but the Magic rallied back to take the lead. Orlando would miss some crucial 3 point shots down the stretch and even LA left the building with a 4 point win, 117-113.

My hotel in Orlando was just plain disgusting. While it may look pleasant, it definitely was not - the humidity in the room was just too much. There were signs everywhere to lock all your doors, a clear indication that crime is out of control there.





Even in my Twenties, I can still go here...



Can you spot the mouse?



Chillin with Potato Head





Macaws



All legos



Universal City Walk





No NBA Tour is complete without a stop at NBA City Restaurant









Are we encouraging children to smoke?



These antennas are a bit different from the norm.



Sometimes you just don't know where the gas tank is on your rent-a-car. Luckily, the pumps at the Florida turnpike can accommodate you.



You know what really grinds my gears? These new car washes at gas stations. I try to purchase gas in a hurry and then think I'm being asked if I want a receipt, so I press "Yes." Next thing I know, I'm being charged $10.00 for a car wash and the station attendant can't do anything to reverse the charge. Totally unrelated to basketball, but just a nuisance of traveling I experienced.

Thanks to Joel Glass.