The Miami Heat became one of the most dominant teams in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) after LeBron James joined the franchise in 2010. However, at the same time, there were a few people who were dissatisfied with his entrance, and unfortunately, it was his colleagues.

One of them was the legendary player for the Heat, Udonis Haslem, who recently discussed this topic in an interview. In point of fact, the 43-year-old admitted that he was tempted to abandon his position on the championship squad but ultimately decided against it. Is this the case?

There is always a difficulty with salary when it comes to a squad that is full of superstars. From 2010 to 2014, the Heat brought in a large number of quality veterans, which ultimately resulted in the players who were already on the roster being forced to accept wage reductions. It was among them that Udonis Haslem and Dwyane Wade were found.

 

Haslem revealed the following in an interview: “When the big three came, you know, you took some of my money, motherf*****.” Some of my money was taken by you. Because they do not have any money for me, they paid your rear end…I was about to leave this place and get the f*** out of here.

Chris Bosh, LeBron James, and Daryl Wade are the three players who make up the Big Three. At the same time, Bosh and James both became members of the Heat. Haslem will receive a total of $35 million from the Heat, as agreed upon. However, after the two superstars mentioned above joined, they made the decision to reduce Haslem’s compensation to twenty million dollars. It was enough of an allure for the three-time winner to make a move in this direction.

How did the Miami Heat manage to hold on to Udonis Haslem?

To be precise, it was not the Heat who convinced Haslem to stay, but the Big 3. At a point in time, it was hard for the organization to even finalize the $20 million. Wade was the moderator, who convinced James and Bosh to take a cut. The Big 3 together sacrificed a total of $15 million in 2010, as they valued Haslem.

In a different interview, Haslem had the following to say: “I know what those guys’ values were, and I know what they were worth at the time.” Then I find myself thinking, “All right, it’s time to move on…However, the fact that Bron, CB, and D-Wade all worked together to reduce the amount of money they took in order to make those twenty dollars available to me was sufficient evidence, as they did not have to do that.