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If you’ve ever been to the American Airlines Arena to watch a Heat game, it’s immediately apparent that many of the fans in attendance rocking translucent white linen shirts took a wrong turn on their way to the club.
There is a reason why Miami Heat fans are widely considered one of the worst fanbases in sports. Remember during Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals when San Antonio was up by four points with 28 seconds left? Fans didn’t even stick around to watch what they believed to be their team’s last game of the season.
Of course we all know what happened next–Ryan Allen drilled that three in the corner to push it to overtime and the Heat went on to win, eventually winning Game 7 and an NBA title.
Miami’s ‘meh’ sporting culture is as weak as ever, according to forward Ersan Ilyasova whose Sixers just bested the Heat in five games in the first round of the playoffs. Ilyasova told ESPN how he expects Boston’s gym to be much more raucous.
“When we were in Miami … the gym was half-empty,” Ilyasova said. “But when you go to Boston, you will feel it. Even in the regular season, you know when you play that team, the arena is full, and they’re really committed fans.”
Despite limping into the second round riddled with injuries, Boston’s rabid fanbase is going to give its team a boost when they take on the white hot Sixers in round 2, starting tonight.
[h/t ESPN]