Udonis Haslem back with Heat after father’s death: ‘Toughest time I’ve ever had to encounter’
With tears in his eyes, Miami Heat captain and veteran forward Udonis Haslem tried to explain Sunday what he endured in recent weeks.
“Probably the toughest time I’ve ever had to encounter,” Haslem said. “The biggest challenge that I’ve ever faced. I have no problem saying that my father is and always will be my best friend.”
Haslem, 41, rejoined the Heat for practice on Sunday at FTX Arena after being away from the team since the start of training camp. He missed the first two weeks of practices following the Aug. 30 death of his father, Johnnie Haslem, at 70 years old.
Johnnie’s passing comes a little more than 11 years after the death of Haslem’s mother, Debra Haslem, who died of cancer in July 2010.
“After losing my mother 12 years ago, I just thought I had my father forever,” Haslem said, with the Heat set to play its fourth of six preseason games on Monday night against the Charlotte Hornets at FTX Arena. “So everything you see on the basketball court — all the catch phrases, the fire, the passion, the ability to get people to follow you and believe in themselves — that’s all my dad, man. That’s who he is, that’s who he was and that’s how he approached it every day. So you just saw me mimic my father every day.”
Like Haslem, Johnnie also was an impressive athlete. According to his obituary, Johnnie played basketball and football while attending Miami Northwestern and went on to play basketball at Stetson University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education.
Johnnie, who wore No. 40 before Haslem made No. 40 his trademark number, played semi-pro basketball in Argentina and with the Miami Ravens.
“He had a sweet midrange game, the way he shot the ball,” Haslem said of his father’s basketball days. “And I worked on my midrange game to get it to the point where I can shoot the ball and make that comfortably, and different things like that. The fire, the passion, the will just to win and compete and not to give in and not to lose. That’s my father. It was all my father. You guys saw me come out and bring that every day, but it’s just something that I was given. It’s going to be hard moving forward without him, but I’m prepared. My parents raised me and I’ve been through enough where I know I can weather any storm I’m in.”
While Haslem was away grieving the loss of his father, he asked Heat players, coaches and staff not to attend Johnnie’s funeral just a few days before the start of training camp. But some still went to be there for Haslem.
“If I say there’s one or two bright spots, these guys were those one or two bright spots,” Haslem said of the Heat organization. “I asked that they not attend the funeral. I wanted the guys to get focused for camp. And I look over and I still see my Heat family. I still see [Pat Riley] and [Erik Spoelstra] and [Chris Quinn] and Steve Stowe.”
The Heat also helped Haslem by simply playing preseason basketball.
“Watching these guys play was a bright spot,” Haslem said. “I didn’t know it would be and I didn’t know I would feel. But as soon as I turned on the TV, all of a sudden I’m engaged. I’m coaching, I’m talking and it’s about basketball and it’s not about anything else. So these guys have been and will continue to be a bright spot for me moving forward.”
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said it felt “normal in our gym” again Sunday having Haslem back on the court for the first time since team practices began.
“UD and Bam [Adebayo] yelling and arguing with each other basically the entire practice and afterward, basically a Heat environment,” Spoelstra said.
Adebayo and Haslem have developed a close relationship, and Adebayo honored Haslem by wearing No. 40 for the first training camp practice while he was away. Haslem appreciated the gesture.
“This whole role that I’ve been playing all these years. If it was for a reason, I found it,” Haslem said when asked about Adebayo. “No. 13 was the reason. It had to be a reason and No. 13 is the reason. He will be the next one. Without a doubt. I’ve learned so much from him as a veteran and he’s learned so much from me as a captain, as a leader, as a friend, as a brother. I play every role I possibly can to help Bam be successful and help Bam move forward in taking this organization where it needs to go.”
For now, Haslem is still working through his emotions as he prepares for his 19th NBA season and his role as team leader. He again put off retirement to sign a one-year deal at the NBA veteran minimum for his 10th contract in the league this past summer.
The Miami native has played less of an on-court role and more of a leadership role in recent seasons. He has played in 29 games since the start of the 2017-18 season, but has served as a Heat captain in each of the past 14 seasons (the longest tenure in team history).
“The journey moving forward was never about did I want to play basketball,” Haslem said of returning to the team on Sunday. “I always knew I wanted to be a part of this. I always knew I had passion still. I always knew I still had game. I always knew I still had things to give. The journey was how do I get back to a point where I can help these guys? How do I get back to a point where I can still be a leader? How can I get to a point where I can still be this captain and be the guy that they expect me to be? That was the journey. It wasn’t easy and I’m still working on it. But today was a good day.”
A good day is a step forward for Haslem.
“In a second, things can change, man,” he said of the perspective he has gained. “In a split second, things can change. You just got to be ready and prepared for what life sends at you. It’s OK to be down, but you can’t stay down too long. It’s OK to be hurt. It’s OK to grieve. It’s OK to cry. It’s OK to want to be alone. It’s OK to do all those things. You earn that right to do those things when you deal with something like this. But you got to move forward and you got to get up and you got to start the process.”
▪ With Haslem back, the only Heat player who did not participate in Sunday’s practice was guard Victor Oladipo (rehabbing from May knee surgery). Oladipo is also the only player on the Heat’s injury report for Monday’s preseason game.
This story was originally published October 10, 2021 at 2:15 PM.
