Miami Heat guard Carlos Arroyo will be appearing at the Miami Hoops Gear Store at Dolphin Mall on Saturday to meet fans and sign autographs.

Arroyo, who attended FIU, will be at the store from 3-4 p.m., at the mall, 11401 Northwest 12th St., Miami.

Customers who buy an 8 x 10 photo ($10); Spalding Basketball ($35) or adidas Swingman jersey ($80), will receive a free autograph on that item. One autograph per customer. More information at heat.com.

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A select group of media was invited Wednesday night to Temple House -- at 16,000 square feet, the largest single family home on South Beach -- for the unveiling of Michael Jordan’s newest shoe. We gathered in a white room with a concrete floor, where Jordan Brand logos were projected on white curtains. A video of Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade being interviewed for a spot on the Brand Jordan team was shown and it even poked fun at the spelling of Wade’s first name.

And then, we got to see the Air Jordan 2010. The 25th anniversary shoe in the popular Jordan Brand line is constructed for performance, but also pushes the envelope of design as the brand’s been doing now for more than two decades. Even Michael Jordan seemed a little stunned at the brand's longevity.

This one’s even got a hole – a window, if you will – in the side that allows sneaker fans and shoe aficionados into the Jordan Brand world. But only a little bit. Jordan Brand is calling it the “first see-through performance basketball shoe featuring a unique thermoplastic urethane window.”

That hole gives fans a glimpse into the line, but “doesn’t take away from the performance of the shoe,” Jordan said of the shoe designed by Tinker Hatfield, Nike vice president of special projects/design, and Mark Smith, Jordan Brand creative director. “We want to be trendy, we want to be stylish yet we still want to be a high performance shoe,” Jordan said.

The shoe will be released on Feb. 13 and is expected to retail for $170.

While other NBA players have worn Air Jordans on the court, the 2010 is being released with the idea it will be worn by a current player. Jordan Brand tapped Wade this summer for its elite brand that also includes Derek Jeter, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul. Wade had been the face of Converse for six years, but relished the idea of joining the brand and its already established team. It's expected he will eventually have his own signature shoe in the Jordan Brand line, but for now, he's honored to be heir to Air.

Jordan was asked about Wade being compared with him. He cautioned that he and Wade didn’t play at the same time.

“Two individuals that never played in same era,” Jordan said. “Yes, we’re very, very similar. Yes he has characteristics that I have … Is he Michal Jordan? No. Am I D Wade? No.”

Jordan went on to say his brand had been interested in Wade for years, but the Heat guard was already tied up with Converse. That changed this summer. Both Converse and Jordan Brand are owned by Nike.

“He has similar passions for basketball,” Jordan said of Wade. “I played in Chicago, he grew up in Chicago … I was very happy we had an opportunity to work with him. “

Jordan also said while comparisons are entertaining to debate, they’re not fair given how times have changed.

“I would give my one leg to be able to go out and play with today’s athletes,” he said. “Yeah, I’d love to play with Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James. You sit there and think what if, what if … I didn’t have a chance to play with Jerry West, I’d love to play with Jerry West or Elgin Baylor. And today’s athletes didn’t have a chance to play against myself or Magic Johnson or Larry Bird. That’s just the way things happen … We get caught up in these debates. And we live through them.”

And then he added with a chuckle, “But he is wearing my shoe, I’m not wearing Dwyane Wade’s shoe.”

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Knowing it was going to be a challenging year on the business side, the Miami Heat has made upgrades at AmericanAirlines Arena to increase sponsor and advertising opportunities. The team’s new MediaMesh – the giant LED marquee on the front of the arena – was unveiled in May. New high definition television screens and menu boards have been installed for this season.

In a meeting with reporters Tuesday, Heat owner Micky Arison said the innovations appear to have made a difference, although he can’t say for sure what’s helped drive sponsorship sales during the recession.

“On the cruise side, one of our brands recently did a consumer survey, trying to find out if people will buy vacations this year. The questions dealt with what will consumers cut back on next year, and sports was number one in the answer of cutting back. This is a national issue, probably a global issue,” said Arison, who is also chairman of Carnival Corp.

In the NBA, Arison said, “The league is dealing with significantly less ticket sales, but … sponsorship has held up better than I would have expected. We’re in a very tough market, because it’s very real estate and banking oriented. We’ve also had some sponsors like Stanford Financial, and others that have failed on us, so there’s no question this is going to be a tough year and a tough period, financially for the franchise. But I don’t think that’s unique to us. It’s a national and global problem.”

Stanford Financial had signage across the Heat’s VIP lobby entrance until earlier this year when R. Allen Stanford was charged with fraud. The signs were pulled from the lobby after the company missed a payment. Meanwhile, with law firm Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler now in turmoil since Scott Rothstein’s alleged involvement in what federal authorities are calling a massive fraud scheme, RRA advertisements are no longer appearing in the Heat’s game program.

But the team’s sponsors sales, including signing Assist-Card to the team’s first-ever presenting sponsorship this season, have been healthier than he anticipated.

“We’re in good shape with sponsorships, surprisingly good shape, but really struggling with ticket sales,” Arison said.

As for why sponsor sales have increased, Arison pointed to the new inventory such as the MediaMesh and speculated that some companies may be excited about the Heat’s young team.

“Because it’s such a banking, real estate oriented community, I thought it would be really murder. And last spring it looked that way,” Arison said. “As the summer progressed, it came around. Where we’re struggling is premium seating and ticket sales, which is really hard right now. People can watch it at home and consumers are very, very price conscious. It’s a unique product, you can sit at home and get it for free. You can’t do that with a cruise.”

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When Miami Heat season ticket holders arrive at AmericanAirlines Arena for tonight’s 2009-10 season home opener against the New York Knicks, they won’t be carrying traditional stock tickets with them.

Instead, they’ll have the print-at-home variety. The team has chosen not to print up ticket booklets to “reduce environmental contamination from harsh inks and chemicals used in the printing process,” according to a message sent to season ticket holders.

“What I hope is it’s one more step towards new technology that’s coming out hopefully in time for next year, where we can embed the bar codes into credit cards, licenses, whatever, so you don’t even need anything,” said Eric Woolworth, the Heat’s president of business operations.

Meanwhile, the Heat's also promoting recycling, by having the plastic bag that wraps the Miami Herald serve as a tool for getting ticket discounts. Bring the bag to the arena's ticket office for discounts of $10 off 300 level tickets ($30 or higher) or $15 off 100 level tickets ($85 or higher). That's the bags with the Heat ad on them that look like this:

The Phoenix Coyotes became the first NHL team to go to a paperless ticketing system and are using a swipe card for entry to games. Read about it here.

Read about the Philadelphia 76ers and Flyers experimenting with paperless ticketing here.

And here’s a story I wrote last year about sports – from golf courses to teams – making environmentally friendly changes in the name of going green.

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The Heat is holding a series of events in the community to gear up for its 2009-10 home opener on Oct. 28 against the New York Knicks at AmericanAirlines Arena. Visit heat.com for more information.

Oct. 22: Heat dancers, Burnie the mascot, Xtreme team and DJ MDOT serve customers at McDonalds, 32nd Avenue and U.S. 1, Coconut Grove, 1-3 p.m.

Oct. 23: Heat Happy Hour at Tobacco Road, Miami, including Heat dancers, Burnie, Xtreme team, 5-8 p.m.

Oct. 24: Tweet with the Heat, Twitter scavenger hunt at Dolphin Mall, 1-3 p.m. Registrations starts at noon at Miami Hoops Gear store. Grand prize is Heat season tickets. Follow twitter.com/MHEAT.

Oct. 25: Open practice, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at AmericanAirlines Arena. Doors open at 10:30 a.m., parking and practice are free and first 500 fans receive an Adidas hat.

Oct.26: Rush Hour Heat. The team pays tolls and dancers and Burnie will hand out goodies and entertain commuters heading east on 836 at Northwest 17th Avenue, 7-9 a.m.

Papa John’s Pizza Deliveries, order between 6-8 p.m. and your pizza might be delivered by a player, dancer, Burnie or Xtreme team member. Vouchers for a free ticket to select November games will got out to first 20 deliveries in Broward, West Palm Beach and Miami-Dade locations during that time.

Oct. 27: Heat window decals will be given out at AmericanAirlines Arena, 5-7 p.m., while supplies last.

Oct. 28: Opening night versus the Knicks, includes Tim Hardaway’s jersey retirement ceremony pregame, 7:30 p.m., AmericanAirlines Arena.

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Last week, the NFL refs announced penalties in Spanish for the benefit of the Hispanic Heritage Month celebration at the Miami Dolphins-New York Jets Monday Night Football game at Land Shark Stadium. The stadium took on a decidedly Latin flavor with a Calle Dolphins tailgating area; Gloria Estefan and Hank Williams Jr. singing a bilingual “Are you ready for some football?” in the MNF theme video; and Marc Anthony performing the national anthem.

Sports leagues certainly recognize the power of marketing to Hispanics. Today, the NBA announced its most comprehensive Hispanic marketing effort that encompasses all of its previous efforts, which have included Spanish-language radio broadcasts in 11 markets and Spanish language team Web sites, and new ones, including advertising, broadcasting and online components.

The league’s effort is called “éne•bé•a,” – or the Spanish pronunciation of ‘NBA,’ – and includes a dedicated Web site at www.nba.com/enebea, which currently features a story about the Miami Heat signing guard Carlos Arroyo (who is from Puerto Rico); advertising that features Heat guard Dwyane Wade along with Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol on Spanish networks; and content on Spanish language social networking sites. There will also be special merchandise. NBA TV even broadcast the NBA Mexico game between the Philadelphia 76ers and Phoenix Suns in Spanish on Sunday.

Already recognized for its efforts to reach fans globally, the NBA wants to make further inroads with its Hispanic fans, who make up 15 percent of the league’s fan base. Some 25 NBA players hail from Latin America and Spain.

NBA Commissioner David Stern said the number of Hispanics living in the U.S. is close to 50 million that will have a spending power in the next several of years of $1 trillion.

“We pride ourselves on our diversity and inclusiveness as a league,” Stern said. “We’ve slowly begun to diversify our efforts to speak to our Hispanic market.”

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Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams is adding yet another job to his resume: restaurateur.

Williams and former Cincinnati Bengal Rudi Johnson have signed on as co-owners of PROOF on Ocean Drive, a health-conscious restaurant and lounge set to open next month in the Z Ocean Hotel South Beach.

“We are thrilled to have such highly-regarded, well-known backers as Ricky and Rudi in our new venture,” Douglas McAllister, president and CEO of the restaurant’s developers Hospitality Development Management Group, said in a statement. “Their leadership and determination on the field will translate just as well off the field, and will no doubt contribute to our commitment to making PROOF a major Miami Beach hot-spot and success.”

Read Ethan Skolnick’s blog item on the restaurant endeavor here.

Williams isn’t the only local athlete with ties to a South Beach restaurant. Last year, retired Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning joined a group of athletes, including retired Pittsburgh Steeler Jerome Bettis and the Denver Nuggets' Chauncey Billups, who together own about a third of Philippe Miami, the South Beach installment of the upscale Chinese restaurant Philippe Chow in New York. Philippe Miami is in the Gansevoort South Hotel.

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Miami Heat forward Michael Beasley is among the NBA players adidas is featuring in its 2009-10 “It’s On Me for My Brotherhood” marketing campaign, which begins airing Thursday.

Beasley is appearing in print ads (see photo) and an online ad at adidasbasketball.com. In the ad, Beasley goes to pick out his shoes and invokes the names of other adidas athletes, including Kevin Garnett and Chauncey Billups. He then pulls on his pair of TS Commander LTs with “B. Easy” on them.

While spots featuring the adidas athletes individually appear on the company’s revamped Web site, a separate ad with several adidas athletes, including Garnett, Dwight Howard and Derrick Rose, will air on TV. Beasley does not appear in the group ad, but you can see his online ad here:

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Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant had the top-selling NBA jersey in China for the third consecutive year during the 2008-09 season, according to sales figures from NBA stores in China released by the league on Thursday.

Heat guard Dwyane Wade’s jersey moved up to fifth in 2008-09 from eighth in 2007-08.

Here’s the top 15 for 2008-09:

1. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
2. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
3. Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics
4. Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets
5. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
6. Yao Ming, Houston Rockets
7. Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
8. Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets/Detroit Pistons
9. Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
10. Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets
11. Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns
12. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls
13. Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs
14. Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards
15. Brandon Roy, Portland Trailblazers

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As of today, the Miami Dolphins have now joined 17 other NFL teams in sporting sponsor patches on their practice jerseys.

NFL owners approved putting sponsor patches on practice jerseys earlier this year, but until today – the first day of regular season practice – the Dolphins hadn’t had worn a patch. Today they’re wearing an AT&T logo on their jerseys.

“It’s a league-wide initiative that does now allow for sponsorships on practice jerseys during the regular season,” Dolphins spokesman Harvey Greene said. “We took advantage to provide additional values to one of our largest corporate sponsors.”

Greene would not disclose financial details of the deal, but AT&T is already a team sponsor. Regular season practices are closed to the public and only open to the media for short periods on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and on Mondays when a full practice is scheduled. That means there is some potential media exposure for the corporate logos.

Under NFL rules, teams had until Sept. 1 to finalize deals with one corporate sponsor for a patch on practice jerseys. Separate deals can be made for the playoffs, an NFL spokesman said.

Other NFL teams with practice jersey sponsors include the Buffalo Bills with Sanyo, Chicago Bears with Northshore University Healthsystem, Cincinnati Bengals with Spongetech, Dallas Cowboys with the University of Phoenix, Indianapolis Colts with Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, and the New England Patriots with Gillette.

Leagues have been softening their stance on corporate logos on jerseys this year. The NBA is now allowing sponsor patches on practice jerseys. The New Jersey Nets announced Tuesday they have become the first NBA team to strike a practice jersey sponsorship deal. The team will wear the logo for PNY Technologies Inc., a manufacturer and supplier of computing and digital imaging products. PNY will also own the naming rights to the team’s practice facility in East Rutherford.

The WNBA this season allowed sponsor logos on its regular season uniforms and two teams took advantage: the Phoenix Mercury struck a deal with LifeLock and the Los Angeles Sparks forged a partnership with Farmer’s Insurance. MLS players also wear sponsor logos on their jerseys during the season.

How long before sponsor logos appear on jerseys during the big four sports’ regular seasons?

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Heat superstar guard Dwyane Wade is joining Nike's Jordan Brand.

Wade, who signed a modest $400,000 deal with Converse as a rookie, is abandoning his deal with Converse, which was set to run through the 2011-12 season. He’s joining Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul and Derek Jeter, among others, with Team Jordan, the brand named for Michael Jordan.

Wade’s first Converse shoe was released during the 2005-06 season.His signing was viewed as a way to spark the struggling brand, which is also owned by Nike. The Wade 4 was released last season, but Wade wore the Wade 1 on the court. Converse re-released a limited number of the Wade 1 last season.

“For me, the move to Jordan Brand is a dream come true,” Wade said in a statement. “As a kid, I grew up on the south side of Chicago idolizing Michael Jordan and have worked hard to achieve the same success that he’s had on the court. I have enormous respect for this brand and all that it stands for. I’m humbled to be a part of the Team Jordan family and I’m looking forward to a great future.”

The Jordan Brand, which also includes apparel, was launched in 1997.

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The introduction of Gloria and Emilio Estefan as minority investors in the Dolphins on Thursday had a festive air: an Estefan greatest hits soundtrack, a Cuban coffee station, plenty of Latin entertainment and lifestyle media – and even a journalist from an Italian style magazine.

Among the media, Dolphins and stadium officials were Related Group CEO Jorge Perez, who is Dolphins owner Stephen M. Ross’ business partner and the guy who introduced Ross to the Estefans, and luxury shoe designer Donald J. Pliner.

Pliner made a beeline for Ross after the press conference. He offered to make slip-on street shoes for the Dolphins. The two pairs he’s considering for the team are his T Rex (photo left) and Uwait (photo below).

Pliner makes shoes for former Heat center Shaquille O’Neal and retired Heat center Alonzo Mourning. He works with the Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. Perez wears Pliner’s shoes. So does criminal attorney Roy Black. The Estefans are his neighbors on Star Island.

The shoes Pliner has picked out for the Dolphins are made of breathable micro-fiber. “It’s more expensive than leather, but it stimulates the blood vessels, stops your feet from getting tired, keeps the blood flowing it has memory,” Pliner said. “They’re water resistant, it looks like leather.”

He added: “The point is if your feet are uncomfortable so is the body and so is the mind.”

So what was Ross’ reaction?

“He gave me his size and which size to send him first,” Pliner said.

For the record, Ross wears a size 13B. “That’s narrow, which is difficult,” Pliner said. “We’ll fit him.”

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Former Heat center Shaquille O’Neal finally unloaded his Star Island home on Wednesday, a day before he was traded from Phoenix to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Philip Freedman, a broker with Flagstone Realty, said the deal to sell the 2.5 acre property at 26 Star Island Drive closed Wednesday. The home sold for $16 million, far below the $18.8 million O’Neal paid for the mansion in 2004 and the $32 million he was seeking for the home in 2005. He was reportedly asking $22.5 million, but couldn’t get nearly that much in this economic climate.

The home has been on and off the market for years, including when O’Neal threatened to move to Broward County when his family grew tired of the gawking boaters who stopped by to look at the house.

The 19,440-square-foot, two-story home has eight bedrooms, eight bathrooms, a dock, gym, tennis court, indoor racquetball court and a separate guest house. Other Star Island residents include Gloria and Emilio Estefan and Rosie O'Donnell.

The home was originally owned by original Heat center Rony Seikaly.

O'Neal has had contracts out on the home that have fallen through, including one with New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez in 2007.

Freedman would not identify the buyer, but the Daily Business Review speculates it could be Peter Fine, a co-producer of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical In the Heights. Fine, the publication reported, had a contract to buy the property for about $19 million and the deal was supposed to close in January.

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Alonzo Mourning and Dwyane Wade are spending a lot of time together this summer promoting causes. Last week, they were at the White House with other notable fathers to promote the responsibilities of fatherhood alongside President Barack Obama.

On Thursday, Mourning, retired Heat center, and Wade, current Heat superstar guard, are joining Latino TV host Fernando Arau in bringing attention to the problem of foreclosures and how to prevent them. The trio is participating in Hope Now Alliance’s “Bringing Hope Home” bus tour of Miami.

No, the group will not be doling out financial or legal advice. Their role is to bring star power and attention to needy communities around Miami-Dade County. They’ll also participate in a roundtable discussion with community leaders and homeowners. The idea is use celebrities to let residents of needy communities know how and where they can get help.

Hope Now, an alliance of counselors and mortgage professionals helping homeowners avoid foreclosure, has arranged other celebrity tours, including with Queen Latifah and Wyclef Jean in Newark and Mary J. Blige and Big Boi in Atlanta.

Next month, Wade is helping host annual charity event Zo’s Summer Groove, now known as The Summer Groove hosted by Zo and D. Wade.

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You can already buy M&M’s chocolate candies in NFL and Major League Baseball team colors with team logos.

Just in time for the NBA playoffs, Mars Direct has added NBA team colors and logos to its My Team collection of candies. The candies are available for all 30 teams - including the Heat - in 7-ounce bags at $12.99 each, but you must order at least three bags. Or you can get 5-pound bags for $140. There’s also candy dispenser with team logos and three 7-ounce bags for $59.99.

Find the team M&M’s at the NBA Store in Manhattan or online at mymms.com/nba.

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Got time to sit around? The Heat is reprising one of its popular promotions to win playoff tickets: "48 Hours of Intense Heat."

Fans interested in winning free playoff tickets and a shot at free 2009-10 lower level season tickets are invited to sit for 48 hours (yes, there will be restroom breaks and food) in front of AmericanAirlines Arena starting at 5 p.m. Thursday through 5 p.m. Saturday, just in time for the 6:30 p.m. start of Game 3 of the Heat-Atlanta Hawks first round playoffs series.

Fans who sit for at least the first four hours will win a pair of tickets to Game 4 on Monday. Those who make it through all 48 hours will win a pair of tickets to each of the Heat’s 2009 home playoff games. If more than one fan makes it through the full endurance test, the team will hold a trivia contest to determine the grand prize winner of the season tickets that also come with free concessions and parking. Other prizes will be awarded throughout the 48 hours of the contest.

The contest is limited to the first 200 fans, who are at least 18 with identification and proof of residency. Registration starts at 3 p.m. Thursday. The team will provide hot dogs and soft drinks, water, umbrellas and entertainment by the four-time NBA Dance Team contest-winning Heat Dancers, the Xtreme Team and Burnie the Heat mascot.

For more information, visit heat.com.

The last time the Heat held this contest was prior to the playoffs in 2000. A total of 172 fans entered the competition with 91 making it through the full two days. The grand prize was awarded to the winner of a trivia contest. This time, the Heat is encouraging participants to chart their progress on their Facebook and MySpace pages and via Twitter.

More MV3

Meanwhile, Goodyear Blimps are encouraging fans to vote for their favorite candidate for NBA MVP from among Heat guard Dwyane Wade, Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. The blimps, which are providing aerial coverage for ESPN and TNT NBA telecasts flew over Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland and Staples Center in Los Angeles yesterday to gather votes by displaying the toll free number – 1-800-773-9614 – where fans can register their votes: 3 for Wade; 23 for James and 24 for Bryant.

Goodyear happens to have blimps in the area of each MVP candidate’s team. The Spirit of Innovation, based in Pompano Beach, is to fly over AmericanAirlines Arena from 6-10 p.m. Saturday.

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In honor of Dwyane Wade’s MVP-caliber season and because fans have been asking for it, Converse has reissued a limited number of the Heat guard’s original signature shoe, the Wade 1.

Fewer than 2,400 pairs of the black shoe with the red accents that Wade wears on the court – yes, he’s been wearing it this season, too – have been released and are currently on sale only at Champs Sports, according to Converse. The shoes, which were first launched before the 2005-06 season, are $90.

The shoe features 0.8 (or 8/10ths of a second) on the inner heel to symbolize the time the ball left Wade's hands when he made two game-winning shots during his first two NBA seasons. His No. 3 appears on the shoelace eyelets and his name is on the shoe’s back and top.

But those nifty “MV3” shirts some were sporting at yesterday’s game against the Knicks, in which Wade scored 55 points, aren’t for sale. They were made just to promote Wade’s candidacy for MVP.

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Tidbits:

+ The Heat dancers still own the NBA’s dance bracket competition, winning the title for the fourth time in the contest’s four-year history. The teams are judged by fans who vote online. Wonder if Pat Riley has plans to trademark something with the number four...

+ In Dunkin’ Donuts bracket contest, Florida Donut Champ is … Boston Kreme. But runner-up Coconut gave the favorite a good run. And apparently there’s also precedent for Boston Kreme… in 2000, in honor of Dunkin’s 50th Anniversary, Americans voted Boston Kreme their favorite doughnut.

+ Win the World Series and your mascot gets an ice cream flavor. Or so it is for the Phillie Phanatic. The popular mascot for the 2008 World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies now has his own “Phillie Phanatic Double Play,” which is: “Bavarian cream-flavored light ice cream with caramel corn and caramel swirl” according to a release. It joins Turkey Hill Dairy’s official team flavor, Phillies Graham Slam. “Just like the Phanatic, this ice cream is a little unusual but it's something you can't help but love,” Turkey Hill President Quintin Frey said in a statement. The mascot flavor will be sold at Citizens Bank Park.

+ And from BankAtlantic Center, increasingly energetic Panthers President Michael Yormark has added blogging to his early morning duties. His “Sunrise Edition” blog is on the team’s Web site. Even after last night’s loss to the Philadelphia Flyers that hobbled the team’s playoff hopes, Yormark tries to push optimism, while he also touts a new sponsor, Fontainebleau Miami, and his personal trainer, whom he says he works out with most weekdays at 4 a.m. Sunrise edition, indeed.

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The Heat takes on the Charlotte Bobcats at 7 tonight, but the Heat dancers have already beaten the Charlotte Lady Cats in the NBA’s fourth annual NBA.com Dance Team Bracket Competition.

That means the three-time dance competition champion Heat dancers are in the championship round against the Houston Rockets Power Dancers.

Heat President Pat Riley allowed the dancers to use his trademarked “three-peat” term in their quest to win the dance competition last year. They wore “Three-peat” T-shirts and sent out email blasts reminding fans to vote for them. Riley trade-marked the term in 1988 when his L.A. Lakers were attempting to win their third straight NBA title. But the Detroit Pistons swept the Lakers in the 1989 Finals.

Fans can vote for the dance team they want crowned until 2 p.m. Monday online here.

Meanwhile, Dunkin’ Donuts’ bracket is down to its “Fabulous Four” today:

It’s No. 1 Glazed; No. 3 Boston Kreme; No. 5 Chocolate Glazed; and No. 10 Coconut (talk about an upset).

The Florida State Donut Champion will be crowned Tuesday. Doughnut fans can lobby franchisees to vote for their favorite via Facebook and Twitter.

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Heat guard Dwyane Wade didn’t play Wednesday night against the Boston Celtics, because of a sore hip, but he’ll debut tonight in the NBA’s new playoff ads in the latest installment of the league’s “Where Amazing Happens” campaign.

Created by Goody Silverstein & Partners and NBA Entertainment, the series of ads ask: “Where Will Amazing Happen This Year?” and feature a number of players in remarkable moments in stark black and white footage. League broadcasters, ABC, ESPN and TNT, are all running the ads that began airing Sunday with ones featuring LeBron James and Joe Johnson.

Spots featuring Wade, James, Johnson, Paul Pierce, Manu Ginobili and other current players will run by the first round of the playoffs. Ads starring former stars, including Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, will air during the conference finals and Finals.

Check out Wade’s spot here:

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The NBA may have banned Heat guard Dwyane Wade’s personalized adhesive bandages, but the fad is already under way. Lil Wayne wore one at Tuesday’s Heat-Detroit Pistons game; so did Burnie the Heat mascot. On Thursday night, even the TNT NBA analysts, including Charles Barkley, were wearing them. Of course, Wade was a guest analyst.

Wade shed his personalized bandage Friday night after the NBA told the team bandages must be worn only for healthcare reasons and can’t have names or promotional slogans on them. Ira Winderman explains the league’s edict here and The Hater weighs in on the controversy here. Incidentally, Jermaine O’Neal did get to wear his headband during Friday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks.

And fans can join the Band-Wade bandwagon on Saturday night. Heat staffers, AmericanAirlines employees, ticket takers and ushers will all be wearing decal versions of the Band-Wade, courtesy of Metro Signs Inc., which made Wade’s adhesive bandages, too. Read about Metro Signs’ involvement here.

The team will be selling special three-packs of the decals featuring Heat, Wade and 3 on them for $5 apiece at the Miami Hoops Gear store at the arena and online. A portion of the proceeds will go to Wade’s foundation. In addition, Saturday is jersey night, so fans wearing Heat jerseys to the game might be lucky enough to get a free decal if they’re spotted by the Heat’s Hoops Crew.

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Jermaine O’Neal, who will make his debut with the Heat on Wednesday, didn’t offer up anything like a Mercedes or a few thousand dollars to new teammate Mario Chalmers for the No. 6 – the number O’Neal wore in Toronto.

No, O’Neal has chosen to go back to wearing No. 7 – the number he wore as a member of the Indiana Pacers. His jersey is already for sale at miamihoopsgear.com or by going to heat.com. And Andy Montero, Heat senior director of retail operations, tells us there will be O’Neal jerseys for sale at AmericanAirlines Arena at Wednesday’s game.

But upstairs on the 300 level of the arena are No. 32 O’Neal jerseys – remaining from Shaquille O’Neal’s tenure with the Heat – at a steep discount. Those are for sale for $10 apiece and fans are still buying them, Heat officials say.

There was no encouraging Jermaine O'Neal to pick No. 32 or special program to pay a few dollars to have your No. 32s replaced with No. 7s. This is, after all, another merchandising opportunity.

“He’s a former Heat player, just like Glen Rice is a former Heat player. We’re happy to see people show up in No. 32 O’Neal jerseys,” Heat executive vice president Michael McCullough said. “We hope more of them get No. 7 O’Neal jerseys.”

“It’s a different player,” Montero added. “It’s a new era.”

The team even has some remaining No. 7 jerseys for Shawn Marion – who was traded to Toronto for Jermaine O’Neal, Montero said.

Additionally, Jamario Moon's No. 8 Heat jerseys will be available at the arena on Wednesday. Moon wore No. 33 in Toronto -- the same number Alonzo Mourning wore with the Heat.

COOK THREE-POINT MERCHANDISE

Meanwhile, the Heat has ordered 60 commemorative versions of the orange and purple “money balls” from this past weekend’s NBA All-Star Game in Phoenix to sell in honor of Daequan Cook winning the three-point contest. The team will also sell 8 x 10 photos of Cook shooting the “money ball.” Those should arrive within a week and will sell at the Miami Hoops Gear store and online -- $70 for the basketball and $5 for the photos, Montero said. He said the same thing was done to honor Jason Kapono, who won the three-point contest in 2007.

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They’ve renamed H-O-R-S-E after insurance company G-E-I-C-O for an event Saturday at NBA All-Star weekend, but Heat guard Dwyane Wade and sponsor T-Mobile are already thinking about H-O-R-S-E at the Eastern Conference Finals.

Wade and T-Mobile kicked off a promotion this week that will give one fan a chance to play H-O-R-S-E against Wade at the Eastern Conference Finals and a shot at winning $50,000. Oh, and the fan can bring along five favorite friends – this is T-Mobile, after all.

To enter, text MYSHOT to 72579 through May 1 or enter online beginning March 4 at www.t-mobile.com/nba -- where you’ll find more information on the promotion as well.

But be forewarned, Wade, who says he plays H-O-R-S-E “all the time,” is ready.

“We can both have fun, I will win, but we can both have fun. I think it’s an unbelievable opportunity for someone, the opportunity of a lifetime,” Wade said. “You can’t beat me. I’m very confident in my ability. I’ve got a couple of shots that will get me over the hump, but I’m sure people will make it hard on me.”

Meanwhile, Barkely is back with Wade in a new T-Mobile ad that also features Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard. T-Mobile dropped the ads that paired Wade and Barkley, after Barkley's drunk driving arrest on New Year's Eve. Barkley also took a leave of absence from his position as an NBA analyst with TNT, but the network now says Barkley will be back, but after the All-Star game.

The new T-Mobile ad breaks Friday; Wade and Howard are on the coaching staffs of the rookies and sophomores, respectively, competing in the Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam on Friday night.

Check out the new spot:

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Twin brothers and sports team execs Michael Yormark (Panthers) and Brett Yormark (New Jersey Nets) often try to take credit for each other’s creative marketing ideas. This time, the pair is trying to offer each other’s fans a break.

Introducing the first-ever “Snowbird Ticket Exchange” program: Panthers season-ticket holders who happen to be in the New York/New Jersey area can cash in unused Panthers tickets for a seat at a Nets game. Nets season-ticket holders in South Florida can do the same to get with unused Nets tickets for a Panthers game.

You just need to prove you’re a season-ticket holder and provide five days’ notice.

“This innovative program represents yet another way for us to add value to being a Florida Panthers season-ticket holder,” Panthers President Michael Yormark said in a statement. “As I am sure many of our fans regularly visit the New York metropolitan area for business or pleasure, they will have an opportunity to add a Nets basketball game to their itinerary.”

Of course, Nets fans might be getting more value at BankAtlantic Center than Panthers fans at the IZOD Center — the Panthers are in the playoff hunt at 24-18; the Nets are lagging at 23-27.

The brothers, however, are also known for their creative sponsorship deals. Maybe they should get JetBlue to sponsor this promotion.

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The NBA must be in a giving mood. In addition to a record five nationally televised games on Christmas Day, there will be plenty of extras surrounding the games.

The league is introducing a series of new comical ads in its popular “Where Amazing Happens” campaign. These ads feature the “Amazing Tour Bus” – a mini double-decker bus complete with an open roof filled with fans on a tour of some insider NBA moments: on the practice court with Greg Oden, during a game with Pau Gasol, and in the locker room with LeBron James.

The spots were directed by Randy Krallman of the talking baby E*Trade commercials and feature character actor Joey Slotnick, who has been on Boston Public, Boston Legal and Family Guy. Check out Oden’s spot here and behind the scenes filming from James’ ad, where we see him sing to Cyndi Lauper’s "Time After Time." The league is launching nba.com/tour with extra features such as James’ favorite songs, which will be available on iTunes.

Meanwhile, if you have extra holiday cash or didn’t get enough gifts, the league is offering fans a chance to bid on the jerseys players wear during the Christmas Day games. There will be a total of 120 jerseys, each featuring a Christmas Day patch – with snowflake and NBA logo – and a tag to mark the event. Interested fans can bid at NBA.com at the tipoff of each game. These are the matchups:

New Orleans v. Orlando (noon, ESPN)
San Antonio v. Phoenix (2:30 p.m., ABC)
Boston v. Los Angeles (5 p.m., ABC)
Washington v. Cleveland (8 p.m., TNT)
Dallas v. Portland (10:30 p.m., TNT)

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Can’t score tickets to the BCS National Championship game between Florida and Oklahoma on Jan. 8 at Dolphin Stadium, but want something more that just to sit in front of your TV?

Fox is producing a 3-D broadcast of the game that is to be shown live in 80 theaters, which have been equipped with the new technology, in 35 states across the country. Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. and 3ality Digital's 3-D image-capture technology are working with Fox on the production. Tickets are expected to run $18 to $22.

On Dec. 4, 3ality Digital worked with the NFL to broadcast the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers game to invited guests at theaters in three markets – Boston, New York and Los Angeles. Although it wasn’t perfect, it reportedly got generally good reviews. Cinedigm and Turner Sports have reached agreement to broadcast the NBA’s All-Star Saturday night festivities from Phoenix in theaters in 3-D on Feb. 14.

For the BCS game, the closest theater to South Florida scheduled to carry the broadcast is the Rave Port St. Lucie.

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What a difference a lousy year makes.

Turnkey Sports & Entertainment released the results of its second annual Team Brand Index survey last week of all 122 NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL teams. The survey, which is purchased by teams and sponsors, measures the brand strength of each team based on the perceptions of fans in those markets.

The company surveyed 12,000 sports fans in 47 U.S. and Canadian markets on their perceptions of the team’s entertainment value, players, ownership and other factors. All four of South Florida’s teams fell in fans’ estimation between the 2007 and 2008 studies, especially the Heat, which was ahead of the Dolphins in the 2007 study. Here’s where the teams rank among the 122 in this year’s survey compared to last year:

Team 2008 rank; 2007 rank
Dolphins: 55; 42
Heat: 65; 33
Marlins: 78; 70
Panthers: 103; 99

THE TOP 5
Green Bay Packers
Boston Red Sox
Pittsburgh Steelers
New England Patriots
Indianapolis Colts

THE BOTTOM 5
New York Islanders
Indiana Pacers
New Jersey Nets
New York Knicks
Seattle SuperSonics*

*The survey was conducted before the SuperSonics moved this season to Oklahoma City

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The Panthers wouldn’t say how many tickets were sold at discounts of 30 percent to 50 percent during their one-day sale from midnight Thursday to midnight Friday, other than it was one of the team’s most successful selling days in the past few years.

Around pro sports, Black Friday was a good day.

The NFL recorded an 85 percent increase in sales at NFLShop.com on Black Friday compared to 2007, making the day the league’s third highest grossing sales day. The biggest day was yesterday (Thanksgiving Sunday), followed by Thanksgiving Sunday in 2007.

The best sellers since Thanksgiving? Brett Favre’s replica men’s green jersey and youth green jersey, followed by Giants-custom hooded sweatshirts and Eli Manning’s replica men’s blue jersey.

Meanwhile, the NBA said its online store recorded its best Black Friday sales ever, more than doubling last year’s figures. Sales at NBAStore.com were up 95 percent for the full weekend. Together, sales at the online store and at the NBA Store in Manhattan rose a combined 38 percent from last year.

Chris Paul’s jersey was the top seller over the weekend, followed by NBA team logoed T-shirts.

And the league kicked off a 12 days of deals promotion at NBAStore.com today. A new discount will be announced each day.

MLB.com, which sold select jerseys at 40 percent off, said sales were up 25 percent compared with 2007.

The NHL said sales at Shop.NHL.com were up 67 percent on Black Friday compared to 2007 and that sales were up 25 percent from a year ago on Cyber Monday. For the full weekend sales rose more than 10 percent from 2007 at the NHL Store in Manhattan.

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OK, so maybe designing a PlayStation and Xbox curriculum isn’t the best move for a charter high school.

Concerned plans for the curriculum at the schools was lacking, the Broward School Board this week denied an application to open three charter schools -- bearing the name of Heat guard Dwyane Wade -- designed for dropouts.

That’s despite several pleas that the unconventional plans for the Mavericks High D. Wade’s Schools, which would be run by private management company Mavericks in Education, might be just the ticket to help distracted students. A charter school is a public school that receives state funding, but is free of most state regulations.

But I’m wondering if it wasn’t the school’s name that was the problem: Mavericks High.

Are you kidding me?

The Heat beat the Dallas Mavericks to win the 2006 NBA Championship.

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Sports are supposed to be an escape from real life. Or at least, that’s what we’re always being told.

But in these difficult economic times, teams are increasingly getting involved in fans’ lives as a way to help out and strengthen their fan bases.

When the Heat launched its season ticket renewal campaign earlier this year, it entered early renewers into a sweepstakes to win prizes that included offers to pay fans’ property tax (up to $5,000) and FPL (up to $4,000) bills.

This week, the St. Louis Blues announced that at every Saturday home game beginning Nov. 29, the team will pay one fan’s mortage or rent payment for four months up to $4,000. The team will call the seat number of the lucky fan.

Today, the New Jersey Nets announced they are offering the unemployed free tickets and some assistance finding a new job. Up to 300 tickets for five different games will be released on a first-come first-served basis to unemployed fans, who sign up for the Nets Employment Program and submit their resumes. The resumes will be distributed to Nets sponsors – including UPS, TD Bank, Coca Cola Enterprises -- and season ticket holders who have businesses that are involved with the program. The fans will also have a chance to attend a Nets career fair later this month.

There are no guarantees the team will be able to provide fans jobs, but if you got one through the program, wouldn’t you be a Nets fan for life?

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If you’re a Heat fan, you’ve no doubt seen or heard the new “Something2Prove” advertisements or glimpsed the billboards. They’re part of the team’s first “substantial” advertising spend since Shaquille O’Neal was traded to the Heat before the 2004 season.

Ad executives, fans and others I spoke with for today’s story about the campaign were impressed with the honesty of the message, that it didn’t hide from last year’s 15-67 debacle. Much of the marketing and advertising approach this year is to introduce fans to the team so they learn more about the players’ personalities.

The team has created a Something2Prove Web page with light videos of the players and a space for fans to share their love -- or even hate -- for the team.

But the question remains will all this effort lead to more ticket sales. Season ticket renewals dragged this offseason putting the team in the bottom third among the NBA’s 30 teams. The team is, however, in the top third in the league for new season ticket sales.

The team opened the 400 level at AmericanAirlines Arena for every game in the 2004-05 season – its first with O’Neal. The black curtains that covered the 400 level have not returned and they won’t this year either. You can buy season tickets in the 400 level for $10. New this year: individual game tickets for $10 in the 300 level and $5 tickets in the 400 level.

The team launched the advertising campaign because it has seats available in the lower bowl for the first time in years. You could see the pockets of empty seats – particularly in the lower bowl – for the first two home games of the 2008-09 season.

Empty seats are expected to be common this season. In fact, the crowd of 15,103 announced for the second home game this past Wednesday, was the team's smallest since the 2003-04 season when the curtains still covered the 400 level.

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You’ll no longer be able to feel the Heat.

The giant flames that shoot from the court at AmericanAirlines Arena during the Heat’s pre-game player introductions are no more.

That’s thanks to pyrotechnics mishaps during last season’s playoffs, including the 22-minute game delay when a New Orleans Hornets’ mascot jumped through a ring of fire and extinguishers used to douse the flames left a mess on the court. Smoke from pregame fireworks in Boston and Cleveland were also deemed a health hazard to players.

At the time, NBA Commissioner David Stern called the displays “ridiculous.” New league guidelines limit fire effects of any kind to pre-game player introductions and halftime. They also cannot be set off from the playing court and must be kept at least 15 feet from the audience, players, coaches and game officials.

But the Heat, whose logo features a flaming basketball, has a replacement planned. Look for it at tonight’s home opener.

“Our overall player introduction sequence will certainly compensate for the lack of flames,” said Michael McCullough, Heat executive vice president. “Fans will certainly not be disappointed.”

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With his gold medal performance at the Beijing Olympics, renewed health and drive to make the Heat competitive again, Dwyane Wade made for a compelling player to feature in the NBA’s “Where Amazing Happens” ad campaign.

His personal journey to the NBA, to the Heat’s 2006 NBA championship and beyond are documented through photos – which he selected – in one of a new series of ads in the campaign that will air during the NBA season tip off on ESPN, TNT and NBA TV. You can watch the spot here.

The campaign, which launched last year, became so popular that NBA fans began making their own versions – including humorous ones – and posting them on YouTube.

This year, the Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki and Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard will also be featured in their own personal journey versions of the ad. Other ads in the campaign will be multi-player spots that include Chris Paul, Chris Bosh, Tayshaun Prince, LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Steve Nash and Paul Pierce, among others.

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The Heat plays exhibition games against the New Jersey Nets in Paris on Thursday and again in London on Sunday, but guard Dwyane Wade’s jersey is no longer No. 1 in Europe. Wade had the top-selling jersey in Europe during the 2006-07 season, but fell to No. 8 last year.

Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant’s jersey topped the list in Europe for the 2007-08 season, according to the NBA. This year five European players are in the top 10, including Pau Gasol (Spain) of the Lakers; Tony Parker (France) of the San Antonio Spurs; and Andrea Bargnani (Italy) of the Toronto Raptors. Newcomers on the list are Marco Belinelli (Italy) of the Golden State Warriors and Jose Calderon (Spain) of the Raptors.

International players account for about 20 percent of NBA rosters. International sales make up more than a quarter of the league’s global merchandise business. And international visitors represent about 40 percent of the customers at the NBA Store in Manhattan.

The top 10 best-selling jerseys in Europe last season were:

1. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
2. Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics
3. Pau Gasol, Los Angeles Lakers
4. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
5. Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs
6. Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets
7. Andrea Bargnani, Toronto Raptors
8. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
9. Marco Belinelli, Golden State Warriors
10. Jose Calderon, Toronto Raptors

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T-Mobile and the NBA are announcing today a multi-year extension to their partnership that began in 2005.

The partnership includes the NBA, WNBA and now the NBA Development League. In addition, Heat guard Dwyane Wade and Charles Barkley will film new T-Mobile ads to add to the popular ad campaign that has previously shown Wade’s effort to be included in Barkley’s "Fave 5." Perhaps Wade is regretting being among Barkley’s "Fave 5," after Barkley took that as license to call Wade at all hours of the day and night.

No word yet on details of the campaign.

In addition to the ads, T-Mobile will continue and expand its platform of fan involvement programs that include NBA All-Star balloting, fan voting for top performers in the Finals, rookie of the month and other honors. There will also be in-arena signage and promotions.

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When the Orlando Magic unveiled its new jerseys this afternoon it had some big help. Really, really big help: A 15-foot tall inflatable jersey that measures 22 feet from cuff to cuff.

The giant jerseys, billed as the “world’s largest jersey,” are the work of Action Sports America, a company that started 14 years ago and has made the giant jerseys for the past decade. They’re used to promote new teams, new uniforms, big events, college football games, says company founder Doug Verb.

They’re hand-sewn, hand-painted and cost $6,500 to $7,500. They’ve even been made to fit over statues, like the Flyers jersey that covered the statue of William Penn atop Philadelphia City Hall. Verb says he’s up to 237 different jerseys.

South Florida sports fans have probably seen the company’s handiwork at the Panthers or when the Heat won the NBA Championship in 2006. Or perhaps at Zo’s Summer Groove.

This afternoon, a giant Magic jersey stood outside the Cheyenne Saloon, where the new 20th anniversary uniforms were unveiled inside.

Action Sports America is also responsible for the hot dog launcher and inflatable Big Balls that mascots can get inside for promotional events and, of course, human bowling.

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The Heat is holding auditions for its beloved Golden Oldies senior dance team on Friday. You must be "at least 60-years young” to try out for the 2008-09 squad.

Typically this item would go unnoticed, but another NBA team’s audition release popped into my email this afternoon: The New Jersey Nets will hold auditions Sept. 25 for this season’s NETSational Seniors dance team.

And that got me wondering about the popularity of these teams. The Heat was the NBA’s first team with a senior dance squad. The Golden Oldies first performed in the 2004-05 season and will mark their fifth season this year. The co-ed troupe of energetic seniors performed at the NBA All-Star Game in Houston in 2006.

Nets owner Bruce Ratner happened to see the Golden Oldies perform at a Heat-Nets game in Miami a few years ago and asked Nets CEO Brett Yormark to look into creating a Nets senior dance team, Nets spokesman Barry Baum said.

And yes, the NBA encourages teams to share their “best practices” across the league.

The NETSational team launched in 2006-07 and has attracted national attention on television's Good Morning America and Today show and documentary filmmaker Dori Berinstein followed the squad for a year and made it the subject of her film, Gotta Dance.

If you’re interested, the Golden Oldies auditions are scheduled at noon Sept. 19 at SW Focal Point Senior Center, 301 NW 103rd Ave., Pembroke Pines.

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Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant still has the top-selling NBA jersey in China based on sales at retail stores in China during the 2007-08 season, according to the NBA. Bryant’s jersey was the top seller in 2006-07, too.

Meanwhile, Heat guard Dwyane Wade’s jersey has dropped from 4th most popular in 2006-07 to 8th this past season. Kevin Garnett, of the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics, has the most popular jersey in the U.S. and second most popular in China.

Of the 10 top-selling jerseys in China, Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs and Carmelo Anthony of the Denver Nuggets have fallen off the list between 2006-07 and 2007-08, replaced by Paul Pierce of the Celtics and Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic.

The league opened its first two NBA stores outside the U.S. in Beijing in July. Sales at the stores have exceeded projections by almost 70 percent already and 1,000 people were lined up outside for the grand opening of one of the stores.

Here’s the list of top 10 best-selling NBA jerseys in China compared with 2006-07:

2007-08 Top Selling Jerseys in China
1) Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
2) Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics
3) Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets
4) Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
5) Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets
6) Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards
7) LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
8) Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
9) Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
10) Yao Ming, Houston Rockets

2006-07 Top Selling Jerseys in China
1) Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
2) Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets
3) Tracy McGrady, Houston Rockets
4) Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
5) LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
6) Yao Ming, Houston Rockets
7) Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves
8) Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs
9) Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets
10) Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards

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Two years ago, when he was still playing for the Heat, Shaquille O’Neal formed a real estate venture aimed at developing “lifestyle” redevelopment projects in cities nationwide. The O’Neal Group launched with its first project being a partnership with the developer of Metropolitan Miami, a downtown Miami complex of condos, a hotel, office and entertainment space.

This week, O’Neal, now center for the Phoenix Suns, announced a new project, this one in in downtown Newark, N.J., near where O’Neal grew up. According to a story in the Newark Star-Ledger, Boraie O’Neal Urban Development is planning a $90 million, 25-story condo tower. Read the story here.

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Limited edition items from the much-hyped historic matchup of the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals that begin Thursday night are being made available for sale to fans.

Celtics forward Kevin Garnett and adidas have teamed up to produce a limited edition version of Garnett’s 2008-09 adidas Team Signature Commander Shoe. The KG Commander is to launch in October, but the special edition shoes are being made specifically for the Finals.

Only eight pairs per Finals game will be made available for $1,017 each (in honor of the Celtics going for their 17th championship) at celtics.com; the TD Banknorth Garden Pro Shop and at the NBA Store in Manhattan. The shoes feature the Larry O’Brien Trophy on one side and numbers indicating that particular night’s Finals game on the other.

Meanwhile, the NBA will be auctioning the players’ game-worn jerseys from Finals Games 1 and 3 – giving fans a chance to bid on a home and road jersey for each player. The Game 1 auction will be at NBA.com from June 5-24 and the Game 3 auction from June 10-26. The jerseys will be specially authenticated with coding, tags and security numbers.

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Rapper and music executive Jay-Z can add another title to his resume: NBA Draft Lottery good-luck charm.

At least that’s what the New Jersey Nets are hoping. Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, a Nets investor, is representing the team onstage at tonight’s NBA Draft Lottery in Secaucus, N.J.

“This is very exciting and I hope my nickname, ‘Lucky Lefty,’ holds up,” Jay-Z said in a statement.

“He’s obviously one of the most recognizable figures in the world. To have him represent us at the lottery, we’re very excited about it,” Nets spokesman Barry Baum said. “We’re all about doing things differently to generate some buzz and excitement.”

Jay-Z’s presence along with guard Dwyane Wade, who will be there on behalf of the Heat, is somewhat new for the NBA. Owners have represented teams in the past, as have current players, but it’s more typical for front-office types — presidents, coaches and general managers — to do the honors.

The Sacramento Kings are sending the winner of their luckiest fan contest.

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Promotion for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is everywhere – even Major League Baseball team schedules and at NBA.com.

Indiana Jones is sponsoring the "Dunk of the Night" on NBA.com and the first Indiana Jones movie in 19 years is helping advertise the NBA’s Conference Finals.

Check out your favorite Major League Baseball team’s schedule online and you’ll find Harrison Ford’s photo in the box for May 22 – opening day for the movie. There’s even an online MLB sweepstakes tied to the movie that includes tickets to see your favorite MLB “living legend” and tickets to the film.

MLB stirred up controversy in 2004 when it teamed with Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios to promote Spider-Man 2 at ballparks across the country, including putting spider webs on the bases. The web-covered bases were scrapped after the outcry.

So are you offended by Indiana Jones teaming with your sports and appearing in the MLB schedule?

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Dunkin’ Donuts is continuing to push its iced coffee and its partnership with the Heat. Customers who purchase an iced coffee at participating Broward or Miami-Dade stores through May 20 will receive a coupon for a free limited edition 1988 inaugural season Heat draft cap.

You need to attend the Heat’s Draft Lottery party at AmericanAirlines Arena, 6-9 p.m. May 20 – where the team will learn when it will pick in this year’s draft (somewhere between first and fourth) -- to cash in the hat coupon. But you’ll also get gift cards for Dunkin’ Donuts purchases and a chance to attend a meet and greet with the Heat’s 2008 draft pick on June 27.

To kick off the promotion, which begins today, the Heat dancers, Burnie and others will stop by the Dunkin’ Donuts at 3280 Davie Blvd., Fort Lauderdale from 3-5 p.m. today. And Dunkin’ Donuts will host its second annual “Free Iced Coffee Day” from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Thursday. Stop by AmericanAirlines Arena between noon and 4 p.m. on Wednesday for free samples, as well.

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OK... it's clearly a joke, but in keeping with its Shaquille O'Neal plays jockey theme, vitaminwater has taken out an ad in this weekend's Daily Racing Form that's an open letter from the former Heat center expressing his interest in running in the Kentucky Derby.

The company debuted an ad duing Super Bowl XLII in which O'Neal, who was traded to the Phoenix Suns in February, plays a jockey. The print ad says O'Neal wants to run in the derby.

It begins "dear friends at the national thoroughbred racing association and trainers, roll up your seersuckers, and put down your mint julep because i have some important news...the big diesel wants in the derby!"

O'Neal signed on with vitaminwater as an endorser and investor last year. The company has even created a web page for horsinaroundwithshaq which includes video and photos of O'Neal having fun at the track.

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If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the NBA can thank Time Magazine for paying tribute to its playoff ads that are part of the league's "Where Amazing Happens" campaign.

The magazine's latest issue shows a split image of Democratic presidential candidates U.S. Sens. Barak Obama and Hillary Clinton and the headline "There Can Only Be One." The NBA ads feature split images of LeBron James and Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan and the same tagline: "There Can Only Be One."

Time contacted the NBA before using its image and credited the league's 2008 playoff ad campaign on its content page with inspiring the cover photo illustration.

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At least someone at the Heat is having success.

With his team in the cellar, it probably wasn’t the kind of success he was hoping for. But Heat coach Pat Riley agreed to let the Heat dancers borrow his trademarked term “three-peat” in their quest to win the title of best NBA dance team for the third consecutive year.

The Heat dance team is pitted against the Los Angeles Clippers Spirit Dance Team in the finals of the league’s Dance Team Competition. Fans can vote until noon today here or at heat.com.

The dance team bracket competition was launched in 2006 as the NBA’s answer to March Madness. Each team’s dancers “compete” online for votes with bios, photos and videos. This year’s competition has drawn more than 7 million page views — up from last year’s 2.6 million.

Heat dancers have been wearing “Three-peat” T-shirts for appearances, and e-mail blasts reminding fans to vote for the team include the term, which Riley trade-marked in 1988 when his L.A. Lakers were attempting to win their third straight NBA title. But the Detroit Pistons swept the Lakers in the 1989 Finals.

“It was probably not the context he had hoped,” Heat Executive Vice President Michael McCullough said.

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To celebrate the first decade of the NBA Store, the NBA has released a list of the store’s Top 10 most popular jerseys. Heat guard Dwyane Wade’s jersey ranks seventh – not bad for a guy who’s only in his fifth year in the league. Michael Jordan ranks No. 1, natch. See the full list below.

And speaking of jerseys, NBA Commissioner David Stern didn’t rule out the possibility of NBA players wearing sponsor logos on their uniforms during exhibition games in Europe this fall that will feature the Heat, New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets and Washington Wizards. The Heat will play the Nets in Paris and London.

“We're mindful of the fact that baseball just did it,” Stern said in a media conference call last week. “Our history has been we've tended to do things that have honored the local venue where we're playing with sort of modifications in uniforms, but we're mindful that in Europe sponsorship on uniforms is more common than it is here, and it's something we would consider but we're not planning.”

The Boston Red Sox and Oakland A’s, who opened the 2008 MLB season with two games in Japan last week, wore sponsor logos on their jerseys and helmets. According to Joyce Julius & Associates, a Michigan firm that measures the impact of corporate sponsorship, the jersey logos – EMC on Red Sox sleeves; Pepsi on the A’s -- generated $851,000 in media exposure during the two game and two replay broadcasts.

The company figured the logos got more than 28 minutes of broadcast time and multiplied that against the estimated cost of commercial time during the broadcasts. Ricoh, the sponsor of the games, got exposure on both teams' batting helmets, worth a total of $498,000 from more than 16 minutes of screen time during the four broadcasts, the company said.

Here’s the NBA’s list of most popular jerseys sold at the NBA store, 1998-2008:

1. Michael Jordan
2. Kobe Bryant
3. Allen Iverson
4. LeBron James
5. Shaquille O'Neal
6. Tracy McGrady
7. Dwyane Wade
8. Jason Kidd
9. Vince Carter
10. Tim Duncan

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If you’ve been reading my stories or followed this blog, you already know that super high energy Panthers President Michael Yormark has an identical twin brother Brett, who happens to be CEO of the New Jersey Nets.

The two are so much alike they finish each other’s sentences and take credit for each other’s creative marketing ideas. In this item from December in an unusual moment, Michael actually gave Brett credit for coming up with a mini-mascot.

But it’s difficult to capture in print how fast paced the brothers are. CNBC Sports Business Reporter Darren Rovell says he’s done that in Friday’s installment of CNBC's “High Net Worth.”

“The truth is their lives have been one big competition and so we’ve told it that way,” Rovell told me. “The piece is basically one big competition from who sold the most creative sponsorship to who wakes up earlier to who works out harder to who’s the best dresser.”

In a story I wrote about them in 2006, Michael insisted he was in the office by 4 a.m.; Brett by 5:15 a.m. This is also from that story:

The pair share business strategies, and occasionally take credit for the other's idea. For example, did "Pancakes with the Panthers" come before "Pancakes and Hoops," which both involved inviting lapsed season-ticket holders to breakfast with players and team executives to encourage them to renew?

Brett, who says he's three minutes older than Michael, launched a series of "Influencer Parties," in which Nets season-ticket holders host potential ticket buyers at catered cocktail parties at their homes. Next month, the Panthers will begin "Hockey House Calls," in which season-ticket holders will host block party-style gatherings for friends, family and neighbors who might be interested in Panthers tickets.

What Rovell says his piece is able to capture is their energy. “We try to open them both up and show people these guys are impossible to walk with, the speed, the pace of their walk. I mean you need a trainer to keep up with them,” Rovell says with a chuckle. “They tell us that one day they might foresee at the end of their careers, opening up a consulting firm together. You kind of wonder what client would attend a 6 a.m. meeting.”

The show airs tonight at 8:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

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The NBA All-Star Game is just as much about showcasing business as it is about the game’s top players. Last year, Heat guard Dwyane Wade was the toast of Las Vegas with his new T-Mobile sidekick, Converse shoes, Topps collectible card with a gambling chip and brand summit with his business partners.

Tonight during the NBA All-Star Rookie Game in New Orleans, Gatorade will debut a new ad featuring Wade for its low-calorie G2 drink. The 30-second ad is in keeping with the theme of the one featuring New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter that ran during Super Bowl XLII and showed grass growing under Jeter’s feet even as he walked city streets. The Wade ad will show the pavement under Wade's feet turning into the boards of a basketball court.

Watch a behind the scenes video for the ad:

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Chew on this: Pepperidge Farm’s Goldfish brand is teaming up with the NBA to promote youth fitness and healthful eating through the league’s Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA and NBA FIT program. Heat guard Dwyane Wade and Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh are serving as the program’s ambassadors.

The partnership rolls out this week in New Orleans at NBA All-Star 2008 with clinics and activities on Friday and Saturday. Pepperidge Farm is also making a donation to the Wade’s World Foundation, which supports programs that promote education, health and social skills for at-risk kids.

Wade will appear in advertising and marketing programs and on a special NBA-themed Goldfish crackers package.

“I’m honored to work with the Goldfish brand in my quest to leave the world a better place than I found it,” Wade said in a statement. “Their long-standing commitment to American youth is inspirational and our mutual interest in helping kids has created a meaningful partnership that will benefit countless children.”

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Shaquille O’Neal’s Phoenix Suns jersey is already available for sale online at NBAStore.com and at the US Airways Center in Phoenix. The NBA Store in Manhattan will have them in stock on Friday.

O’Neal’s jersey ranked No. 12 in popularity among NBA players at the end of the 2006-07 season, according to the league. It was No. 1 at the end of the 2004-05 season – his first with the Heat.

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Following a trend in the sports industry, the Heat will test a limited number of “all-you-can-eat” seats at three games this month.

The seats, which cost $45 piece, are on the 400 level at AmericanAirlines Arena and come with a chance to pick up four items from a very narrow list of options – regular hot dog, regular nachos and cheese, small popcorn, peanuts, small soft drink and bottled water - on an unlimited number of trips to the concession stand. Fans are required to buy at least two tickets to qualify for the promotion.

Fans with season tickets in the designated area can get the food for an extra $10 per seat per game. The games are Dec. 13 versus the Washington Wizards, Dec. 17 versus the Minnesota Timberwolves and Dec. 20 against the New Jersey Nets.

The Heat is trying out the promotion earlier than anticipated. Team officials told me earlier this fall they were developing a food included ticket option for the 2008-09 season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers helped spawn the growth of tickets with food when they designated 3,000 bleacher seats as the All-You-Can-Eat Right Field Pavilion last season. The food included Dodger dogs, peanuts, popcorn and soft drinks and ran $20 for group tickets to $40. They sold 70 percent of capacity for the season and a half dozen other MLB teams have since added all-you-can-eat sections.

Meanwhile, the Panthers and Dolphins have created higher-end seating options that come with upscale food. The ADT Club at BankAtlantic Center offers fans who spend $7,500 to $9,000 a year, depending on the length of the contract, to get a seat and fancy food for every hockey game and every concert in the building for a minimum of 75 events. The idea is to create the exclusiviity of a suite, but at a more affordable price. A hockey-only option on the 400 level with sports bar style food averages $2,000 a season.

The Dolphins offer a couple of higher-end options with food, including 10-person suites in the east endzone of Dolphin Stadium that include food in a common area shared by three others suites, and run $80,000 a season.

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