Heat to host "25 Years of Heat" retrospectives starting with Sherman Douglas

25 years may not be a long time for some NBA franchises, but for South Florida basketball fans it's been plenty. As Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin sang many, many years ago: "Good times, bad times, you know I've had my share." Though the first several years were definitely rocky (and what expansion team hasn't gone through that?), the Heat employed several fan-favorites that gave fans something to cheer about before the Pat Riley-led teams that elevated the franchise from the mid-90s onward.

One of those fan favorites, Sherman Douglas, returns to South Florida on Thursday, November 29, 2012, when the Heat pays homage to its 25-year history by launching "25 Years of HEAT" - a special retrospective welcoming back players who will share their memories with fans by participating in various pre-game, in-game and on-court activities.

Activities will include:

• A pre-game appearance on Sun Sports' HEAT Live show.
• Interviews on English and Spanish HEAT pre-game radio broadcasts.
• An in-arena halftime interview at center court.
• Special guest commentator duties during the Sun Sports television broadcast.
• A pre-game meet and greet opportunity exclusively for HEAT Season Ticket Holders.

The Heat sent out a press release detailing Douglas' accomplishments in his dozen years in the NBA...

"As a rookie in 1989-90, he appeared in 81 games (66 starts) and averaged 14.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.79 steals and 30.5 minutes and was named to the NBA's All-Rookie First Team. Douglas was the only second-round pick to be named to either of the NBA's All-Rookie Teams that season. Known to many as "The General," he was perhaps best remembered for his incredible alley-oop passes and the excitement he brought to the early HEAT teams. In just his second season, Sherman led the HEAT in scoring, posting career highs in both points (18.5) and assists (8.5). For his efforts, he was named the team's Most Valuable Player. Though his HEAT career spanned just a little over two seasons, Douglas still ranks among the HEAT all-time leaders in several categories including: assists (4th/1,262), most assists in a single season (3rd for his 1990-91 season/624 and 4th for his 1989-90 season/619), most assists in a game (2nd for 17 assists @ ATL on Feb. 26, 1990 and tied for 3rd with 16 assists @ ORL on Feb. 2, 1991), steals in a single season (5th/145 for his 1989-90 season) and holds the franchise record for the most consecutive games with at least one steal with 27 (Jan. 7, 1990-Mar. 5, 1990). On December 27th, 1990, en route to a career-high 42-point performance, Sherman scored 31 points in the first half vs. Denver, a HEAT record that he shares with Dwyane Wade to this day. After a little more than two seasons in Miami, Sherman would go on to play for five other franchises in a career that spanned 12 years."