The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league’s Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at Miami-Dade Arena, and has won three NBA championships. The franchise began play in the 1988–89 season as an expansion team. After a period of mediocrity, the Heat gained relevance in the mid-1990s when Pat Riley became team president and head coach. Until 2001, the Miami Heat have won four consecutive division titles. The team also experienced success after drafting Dwyane Wade in 2003. Led by Wade and, following a trade for former NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Shaquille O’Neal, the Heat won their first NBA title in 2006. After the departure of O’Neal two years later, the team struggled for the remainder of the 2000s. In 2010, the Heat signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh, creating the “Big Three” along with Wade. During their four years together, they led the Heat to the NBA Finals in every season, culminating in back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013. All three departed by 2016, and the team entered a period of rebuilding. After acquiring All-Star Jimmy Butler in 2019, the Heat returned to the NBA Finals in 2020. The Miami Heat hold the record for the NBA’s third-longest winning streak, 27 straight games, set during the 2012–13 season. Six Hall of Famers have played for Miami, and James won two consecutive NBA MVP Awards while playing for the team.