2000–01 Miami Heat season

(lost to Hornets 0–3)

The 2000–01 Miami Heat season was the 13th season for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Heat acquired All-Star guard Eddie Jones, Anthony Mason and Ricky Davis from the Charlotte Hornets, acquired Brian Grant from the Portland Trail Blazers in a three-team trade, and signed free agent A.C. Green. However, prior to the start of the regular season, All-Star center Alonzo Mourning suffered a kidney disorder after playing in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and only played in the final thirteen games of the season.

Without Mourning, the Heat struggled with a 5–9 start to the regular season, as Davis only played just seven games due to ankle and knee injuries, and was out for the remainder of the season. However, the team soon recovered playing above .500 in winning percentage as the season progressed, as the team acquired Cedric Ceballos in a trade with the Detroit Pistons in late November. The Heat held a 30–20 record at the All-Star break, and finished in second place in the Atlantic Division with a solid 50–32 record, which earned them the third seed in the Eastern Conference.

Jones averaged 17.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game, while Mason averaged 16.1 points and 9.6 rebounds per game, and Grant provided the team with 15.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. In addition, Tim Hardaway contributed 14.9 points and 6.3 assists per game, and also led the Heat with 189 three-point field goals, while Mourning averaged 13.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game, mostly playing off the bench as a backup center during his short 13-game stint. Meanwhile, Bruce Bowen contributed 7.6 points per game and 103 three-point field goals, despite shooting .363 in field-goal percentage, while second-year guard Anthony Carter provided the team with 6.4 points and 3.7 assists per game, three-point specialist Dan Majerle contributed 5.0 points per game, and Green averaged 4.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C., Mason and Mourning were both selected for the 2001 NBA All-Star Game, as members of the Eastern Conference All-Star team, although Mourning did not participate due to his kidney disorder; it was Mason's first and only All-Star appearance. Mason also finished tied in 15th place in Most Valuable Player voting, while head coach Pat Riley finished in fourth place in Coach of the Year voting.

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 2001 NBA playoffs, the Heat faced off against the 6th–seeded Charlotte Hornets, a team that featured former Heat forward Jamal Mashburn, David Wesley, and second-year star Baron Davis. The Heat struggled and lost the first two games to the Hornets at home, suffering two 26-point losses at the American Airlines Arena, 106–80 in Game 1, and 102–76 in Game 2. Hardaway re-injured his left foot in Game 2, in which he sustained during the final month of the regular season; without Hardaway, the Heat lost Game 3 to the Hornets on the road, 94–79 at the Charlotte Coliseum, thus losing the series in a three-game sweep.

The Heat finished 15th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 678,186 at the American Airlines Arena during the regular season. The team made several transactions in the following off-season; Mason signed as a free agent with the Milwaukee Bucks, while Hardaway was traded to the Dallas Mavericks after five in a half seasons with the Heat, Ceballos signed with the Denver Nuggets, but was later on waived and then retired, Bowen signed with the San Antonio Spurs, Davis was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Majerle re-signed with his former team, the Phoenix Suns, and Green and Duane Causwell both retired.