Udonis Haslem

His father, John, played college basketball for the Stetson Hatters from 1972 to 1974.

His mother, Debra, was Puerto Rican.

Haslem attended Wolfson High School in Jacksonville, Florida, then Miami Senior High School in Miami.

Udonis Johneal Haslem (born June 9, 1980) is a former American professional basketball player who is currently the Vice President of Basketball Development for the Miami Heat, where he spent his entire 20-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Haslem played college basketball for the Florida Gators, where he was a key member of four NCAA tournament teams.

He helped lead Miami High to state titles in 1997 and 1998 (the last two of three in a row), playing alongside another future NBA player, Steve Blake.

The team was coached by UMass Amherst head coach Frank Martin.

However, an investigation by the Miami New Times revealed that Haslem, Blake, and several other players circumvented residency requirements.

The New Times reported that while he claimed to live in Miami, Haslem lived in Miramar.

His official school address was an efficiency apartment owned by a longtime Miami High booster, which was also a violation of Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) rules.

As a result, Miami High was stripped of its 1998 title and ordered to forfeit its entire schedule.

Haslem accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Billy Donovan's Gators teams from 1998 to 2002 while majoring in leisure service management.

As the Gators' starting center for four years, Haslem was part of Donovan's 1998 recruiting class that raised the national prominence of the Florida Gators basketball program and included future Miami Heat teammate Mike Miller.

Haslem's sophomore season saw the team advance to the NCAA men's Division I basketball championship game before falling to the Michigan State Spartans 89–76.

The Gators received NCAA tournament invitations four consecutive years during Haslem's college career—the first time in the program's history.

During his tenure with Florida, Haslem averaged 13.7 points per game and 6.7 rebounds.

He was named to the coaches' All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) team four times: as the third team in 1999 and 2000, and the first team in 2001 and 2002.

Haslem also ranks third in team history in points scored (1,782) and tenth in rebounds (831).

Haslem went undrafted in the 2002 NBA draft primarily due to his relative lack of size for a forward as he measured just 6ft 6in at the NBA pre-draft camp.

Seattle SuperSonics coach Nate McMillan had promised to draft Haslem if he was still available in the second round, but the offer fell through.

Haslem accepted an offer to join the Atlanta Hawks for training camp and made their roster for the Shaw's Pro Summer League.

However, he was released by the Hawks before the start of the 2002–03 NBA season.

Haslem signed with Chalon-Sur-Saône of the French LNB Pro A.

He arrived in France weighing nearly 300 lb. While in France, Haslem lost 50 lb in eight months.

He averaged 16.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game in his lone season with the team.

Haslem began his professional career in France with Chalon-sur-Saône and then signed with his hometown Miami Heat in 2003, where he became the longest-tenured player in franchise history.

On August 6, 2003, Haslem signed with his hometown team, the Miami Heat.

As a rookie, Haslem played in the Rookie Challenge during All-Star weekend, earned NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors, and helped the Heat reach the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

In 2004–05, Haslem started in all 80 games in which he appeared, averaging 10.9 points, a career-high 9.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 33.4 minutes per game.

Haslem's .540 field goal percentage ranked fifth on the Heat's all-time single-season list then and fourth in the NBA.

Haslem appeared in Rookie Challenge for the second straight year, this time for the sophomore team.

Haslem re-signed with the Heat in August 2005.

Haslem also won three NBA championships with the Heat (2006, 2012, 2013).

Haslem was born in Miami.

In June 2006, he helped the Heat win their first NBA Championship with a 4–2 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.

Haslem recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds in the title-clinching Game 6.

Haslem scored a career-high 28 points on November 10, 2006, in a 113–106 win over the New Jersey Nets.

Since the 2007–08 season, Haslem was hired as the team captain for the Miami Heat.

On January 29, 2008, Haslem—who had been the only Miami player to start all 43 games of the 2007–08 season—sustained a sprained ankle during the Heat's 117–87 loss to the Boston Celtics.

He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great" in 2012.