Listing the 5 Miami Heat players to win an Olympic gold medal
Several NBA players have opted to play for Team USA in the Olympics, and some of them also played for the Miami Heat. Although the USA men's basketball 1992 Dream team did not include any Heat players, they have made up for it in subsequent years.
The USA men's basketball team has been very successful in the Olympics, winning medals in their 19 appearances thus far. Since the start of the 21st century, Miami Heat players have been part of the US national team at every Olympic event except in 2016.
The Miami Heat had four of its players compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Bam Adebayo represented team USA, while KZ Okpala, Precious Achiuwa, and Gabe Vincent suited up for Team Nigeria.
That said, let's take a look at the only five Miami Heat players to win an Olympic gold medal.
#1 Alonzo Mourning (2000)
Alonzo Mourning was part of an elite USA team that comprised some of the best scorers in the NBA at the time. Jason Kidd, Kevin Garnett, Gary Payton and Vince Carter were also on the team.
Mourning was one of two Miami Heat players that were called up to the national team. As expected, Team USA maintained a perfect 8-0 record in the competition.
The Miami Heat finished second in the Eastern Conference during the 1999-00 season, thanks to the brilliance of Mourning. He led the team in points (21.7) and rebounds (9.5) per game.
Although the Heat crashed out of the 2020 NBA playoffs in the second round, the big man was still very efficient. His dominance earned him a call-up to the national team for the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics. Till date, Mourning remains the Miami Heat's all-time third best player behind Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.
#2 Tim Hardaway (2000)
Tim Hardaway was another Miami Heat star who was called to represent team USA at the 2000 Olympics. Although he was close to the end of his career, the 33-year old stayed productive for the Heat and the USA team.
Hardaway finally had his chance to suit up for the national team following disappointments in 1994 and 1998. The Miami Heat guard was replaced due to a knee injury in 1994, while the entire team was replaced in 1998 due to an NBA lockout.
Although he did not play as many minutes as he'd have liked, he averaged 5.5 points and shot 38.5% from the field. Hardaway came off a decent run with the Miami Heat, ending the season as the third-highest scorer and assist leader.