2006 Miami Heat

Miami rebuilt around Wade and Shaquille O'Neal, adding Antoine Walker, James Posey, Jason Williams, and Gary Payton in the offseason. The pieces took time to fit, and the team sat at .500 a month in. Van Gundy resigned in December, and Riley returned to the bench.

Wade became one of the league's best players this season, and the veterans gave the roster Finals experience. Payton, Mourning, and Walker had all chased a ring for years. The Heat finished atop the Southeast and beat the 64-win Pistons in the conference finals.

The Finals opened badly. Dallas won the first two by double digits and led Game 3 late before Wade took over. He scored Miami's points down the stretch, and the Heat won four straight. Game 5 went to overtime, where Wade set a Finals record with 21 made free throws.

Wade took Finals MVP. Miami became the third team in league history to win a title after falling behind 0-2, and the championship was the first for Payton in his 16th season and for Mourning after a kidney disease nearly ended his career.

The starting five was Jason Williams, Dwyane Wade, Antoine Walker, Udonis Haslem, and Shaquille O'Neal. Pat Riley coached the group with James Posey as the primary bench scorer.

The full roster ran deeper than the headline names. Role players who mattered included Gary Payton (first ring in his 16th season).

The 2006 champion had to survive four playoff rounds in a 30-team league. Depth and matchups mattered as much as star power, especially on the road in the conference finals.

The Miami Heat share a lineage with other banners from 2012, 2013. Compare those seasons on the franchise hub to see how the roster and style changed between title runs.

Looking back, the 2005-06 Heat went 52-30 and won the franchise's first title, beating the Dallas Mavericks in six after losing the first two games. Dwyane Wade carried the comeback, averaging 34.7 for the series and 39.3 over the final four. Pat Riley had taken back the coaching job from Stan Van Gundy partway through the season.

For the full roster beyond the featured starters, see the table on this page. For other Miami Heat titles, use the franchise hub linked below.