When we knew we were going to be spending some time in Miami Steve checked out if there were any basketball games on. Not only were the Miami Heat playing on the Sunday night but they were playing the Chicago Bulls – how cool would that be to see the legendary Chicago Bulls play? We went online and secured some tickets – we wanted to be mid court so we could see all the action.

The game started at 6pm so we got there about 5.30pm – they have lots of pre game entertainment. They welcomed the Chicago Bulls players and then the lights went out. The music was turned up and they rolled out a large Miami Heat flag in the centre of the court – as each Miami Heat player was introduced flames shot out of the gas burners. It was very dramatic.

The game started and I was mesmerised – the one and only basketball game I went to was about 25 years ago between Waikato and North Harbour and I remember it took forever with all the time outs. Each quarter is 12 minutes and time ticked down fast. Each team had a time out per quarter and during this time they had competitions and entertainment going on. I also learnt that each team has 24 seconds to take a shot – I never knew that so that was also exciting watching the 24 seconds tick away and seeing what the teams did to take it to the wire. There were a few 24 second time violations.

The home crowd is pretty lethal with all the chanting and they make lots of noise and boo the opposition when they are taking their shots after a personal foul has happened.

The Miami Heat started well but the Chicago Bulls showed their class and powered past the Heat on the scoreboard. Before we knew it 2 hours and 20 minutes had passed and the game was over. The Bulls won 95 to 73. We both really enjoyed our NBA experience and just cannot believe how many cool sporting events we have managed to attend this year – feeling very blessed : )

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the pre-eminent men’s professional basketball league in North America, and is widely considered to be the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world. It has 30 franchised member clubs (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the four major North American professional sports leagues – the others being American Football (Gridiron), Ice Hockey and Baseball. NBA players are the world’s best paid sportsmen, by average annual salary per player.

The league was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The league adopted the name National Basketball Association on August 3, 1949, after merging with its rival National Basketball League (NBL).

The NBA is divided into two conferences – the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. Each Conference has 15 teams who are split into three divisions of 5 teams each.

During the regular season, each team plays 82 games, 41 each home and away. A team faces opponents in its own division four times a year (16 games). Each team plays six of the teams from the other two divisions in its conference four times (24 games), and the remaining four teams three times (12 games). Finally, each team plays all the teams in the other conference twice apiece (30 games). The top eight from each Conference then have playoffs to determine who will go through to the NBA final. All playoff series are the best of seven games.

Miami Heat
The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). They play their home games at the American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami. The team owner is Micky Arison, who also owns cruise-ship giant Carnival Corporation. The team president and de facto general manager is Pat Riley, and the head coach is Erik Spoelstra. The mascot of the team is Burnie, an anthropomorphic fireball.

Formed in 1988 as one of the NBA’s four expansion franchises, the Heat have won three league championships (in 2006, 2012 and 2013), five conference titles and 11 division titles. From February 3 to March 27, 2013, the Heat won 27 games in a row, the second-longest streak in NBA history (after the Los Angeles Lakers’ 33 wins). In 2013, Forbes valued the Heat at $625 million, sixth-most-valuable among NBA franchises.

Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team. They are based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was founded on January 26, 1966. The Bulls play their home games at the United Center, also known as the “Madhouse on Madison.” The Bulls saw their greatest success during the 1990s. They are known for having one of the NBA’s greatest dynasties, winning six NBA championships between 1991 and 1998 with two three-peats. All six championship teams were led by Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and coach Phil Jackson. The Bulls are the only NBA franchise to win multiple championships and never lose an NBA Finals in their history.

The Bulls won an NBA record-72 games during the 1995–96 NBA season and are the only team in NBA history to win 70 games or more in a single season. Many experts and analysts consider the 1996 Bulls to be one of the greatest teams in NBA history. As of 2013, the Bulls were estimated to be the third most valuable NBA franchise according to Forbes, with an estimated value of $1 billion, earning an estimated $52.2 million in operating income in 2013. Michael Jordan and Derrick Rose have both won the NBA Most Valuable Player Award while playing for the Bulls, for a total of six MVP awards. Derrick Rose played on Sunday night in the game against the Miami Heat.

The Chicago Bulls are owned by Jerry M. Reinsdorf (born February 25, 1936) who is a CPA and lawyer – he also owns the MLB’s Chicago White Sox. He started his professional life as a tax attorney with the Internal Revenue Service. He has been the head of the White Sox and Bulls for over 25 years.

He made his initial fortune in real estate, taking advantage of the Frank Lyon Co. v. United States decision by the United States Supreme Court which allowed economic owners of realty to sell property and lease it back, while transferring the tax deduction for depreciation to the title owner.