Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism Harrison Thompson greets Miami Heat players and officials on their arrival in The Bahamas yesterday evening. (Photo: Ministry of Tourism/Kemuel Stubbs)

Gone are LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and to a certain extent Chris Bosh, but back are the Miami Heat in paradise.
For the second time in four years, the Heat will stage its training camp in The Bahamas, engaging in two-a-days inside the Imperial Ballroom at the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island here in The Bahamas. Heat players, coaches, trainers and various personnel touched down at Odyssey Aviation yesterday evening. Heat President Pat Riley didn't make the trip three years ago, but is here with the team this year. The five-day camp will get underway this morning.

None of the players or team officials were available for comment, but Senior Director of Sales, Marketing and Sports in the Ministry of Tourism Greg Rolle said that for the Heat to return to The Bahamas for its training camp shows the level of friendship and commitment between the two entities. The Miami Heat and The Bahamas' Ministry of Tourism currently has two years remaining on its five-year deal. The partnership has grown from strength to strength each year.

"The Ministry of Tourism understands the significance of working with mega markets such as the Miami Heat. For them to come back to The Bahamas, it must mean that we did an incredible job the first time around," said Rolle. "When you look at the last quarter of 2013, the numbers were projected to be in the negative, but somehow we turned that around and the trip of the Miami Heat to The Bahamas was a big reason for that. Those numbers were turned around and became positive.

"The Bahamas' economy benefitted about 20-plus million dollars. That turned our country around, and that shows you the level and the power of sports. That created a paradigm shift that we have not seen for a long time. For persons in South Florida, all they heard were The Bahamas and the Miami Heat. That is what the 'Blue Ocean' strategy, where you eliminate the competition and speak directly to consumers, is all about."

In 2013, the Heat ventured outside of Florida for its training camp for the first time in its history, now spanning 28 years. This year will be the second time that the annual camp is held outside of Florida, and both times, The Bahamas is the destination. However, unlike 2013, the Heat come in a bit subdued. The organization is not as high-profiled as it was three years ago, when mega stars James and Wade led the charge. Bosh was the third member of their "big three", and the Heat was coming off back-to-back titles in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Be that as it may, Rolle said the Heat brand is still a major one in the United States, and globally. The Heat along with fellow Florida teams Miami Dolphins and Florida Panthers have partnerships with The Bahamas' Ministry of Tourism.

"Florida is our key market and we try to saturate Florida in terms of the franchises coming here," said Rolle. "We are looking at bringing the Orlando Magic on board as well. With us having a vibrant sales and marketing team, we are able to connect the dots. The whole idea is to create heads in beds, and to speak to the consumers.

"When we are able to connect with the major franchises that resonates with the visitors, and visitor arrival increases tremendously. The Washington Redskins recently opened the door for us and they have an extensive reach. We saw that could be a viable option for us, and so we pursued that aggressively.

"Now, we're working on getting New York and Houston to come on stream. We're also looking at the New Orleans Pelicans. 'Buddy' Hield is one of our top sports ambassadors. He is doing his thing in the NBA and we on The Bahamas side have to do our part. Those are the things that we want to put in place."

Bahamian Chavano "Buddy" Hield is a two-guard with the Pelicans. He was taken sixth overall in June's NBA Draft. He and the Pelicans will visit the Heat in their only regular season trip to South Florida on March 15, 2017. The night was selected as The Bahamas' Ministry of Tourism 'Bahama Night' by tourism officials.

"The whole idea is to maximize the market," said Rolle. "We have a lot to offer our visitors. We want to create heads in beds and full up the hotels. All of these teams have huge fan bases and we want to capitalize off that."

Today, the Miami Heat are led by players such as Hassan Whiteside and Goran Dragic. Bosh is still their highest paid player, but recently failed a preseason physical, prompting Heat President Riley to state that Bosh's Heat career is probably over. He said they are not working toward his return. Bosh has been sidelined for the second half of each of the past two seasons due to blood clots. He is in the middle of a five-year, $118 million dollar deal, all of which is guaranteed.

As for the Heat, they were given a musical welcome by the Colours Junkanoo Group yesterday evening. The camp will get underway this morning and will run through Saturday. On Thursday, former Heat player and current Heat Vice President of Player Programs and Development Alonzo Mourning will stage a youth camp inside the Grand Ballroom at Atlantis.

The Heat will depart The Bahamas on Saturday, receiving a rake-n-scrape send-off.

Sheldon Longley, Guardian Sports Editor

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