Getty General manager Andy Elisburg of the Miami Heat looks on prior to the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at American Airlines Arena on December 25, 2020 in Miami, Florida.
Miami Heat general manager Andy Elisburg, who also serves as the team’s senior vice president, is an integral part of the franchise’s front office, however, unlike president Pat Riley, he stays out of the spotlight. That is, until the Heat’s dramatic loss to the Denver Nuggets last week.
With just two minutes and 39 seconds left, during which the Nuggets were already up by a sizable lead, Nikola Jokic, who’s 6-foot-11 and 284 pounds, approached Markieff Morris to jam his shoulder into the Heat player while his opponent’s back was turned.
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Nikola Jokic and Markieff Morris were both ejected from the game after the two exchanged hard fouls.
A stretcher was brought out, as it was unknown whether or not Morris, 32, could get himself off the court, but thankfully he was able to walk off into the locker room.
After the game, Elisburg also made his way toward the locker room to check on the team, knowing his players’ emotions were still running high, and much to his surprise, that moment was photographed, and subsequently went viral on Twitter.
HEAT CULTURE
The now-infamous photo, taken by the Denver Post’s Aaron Ontiveroz, shows Elisburg, who’s worked with the Heat organization since 1988, opening the hallway door at the Ball Arena, where the bulk of the Heat’s starting lineup was waiting in the hallway, staring down the Nuggets’ locker room.
“In situations like that, you want to make sure that everything stays as calm as possible, leave everything on the floor, let’s not make anything worse,” Sun Sentinel‘s Ira Winderman.
In the photo, Elisburg’s 6-foot-6 frame with one arm blocking the door’s opening, makes him look like a bodyguard keeping Kyle Lowry, Bam Adebayo, Dewayne Dedmon, and Jimmy Butler back.
Much to Elisburg’s surprise, the next day, which was his 54th birthday, he came across the photo, which made its rounds on not just Twitter, but also Reddit, Instagram, and Facebook.
GettyAndy Elisburg, Pat Riley and Nick Arison of the Miami Heat celebrate the NBA Championship victory rally at the AmericanAirlines Arena on June 24, 2013 in Miami, Florida.
“Certainly the fact you have that [height] is certainly there,” Elisburg said. “But I think there’s a respect level that you have with the players, regardless of height or size or everything else. They respect that you’re out there looking out for their best interests and you’re out there looking out for them.”
“That is not my first security duty where I’ve had to try to put myself in between, and I’m able to sort of do that a little bit.”
Elisburg Clarified The Viral Photo Is Somewhat Misleading
Jimmy Butler had words for Nikola Jokic after his foul on Markieff Morris.
After boarding the team flight to Los Angeles, Elisburg received a call that the NBA was investigating the Morris/Jokic altercation
“I looked at the wall clock and it’s 5 o’clock,” Elisburg said “I got a 5 a.m. call saying they were doing the investigating, which is standard. But obviously, the timing was a little odd. But that happens sometimes when you’re on the road.
“And at about 6 o’clock in the morning I rolled over and said, ‘Let me see what’s on Twitter?’ And I got to Twitter and I saw the pictures coming through up on Twitter, and I was like, ‘O…K…”
“Everyone’s emotional at those particular moments and you just want everyone to just sort of calm down,” Elisburg continued. “The picture looked more than it really was. But you just want to make sure you try to keep everyone as safe as you can.
“With situations like that, when the locker rooms are closer together, you probably are better to make sure you’re between the various things,” he said. “The picture [angle] was behind me, so nothing had happened at that point in time that would elicit to me that anything would come of it. But it’s sort of an open door.”
The NBA Delivered Fines & Suspensions to 3 Players Following the Altercation
Nikola Jokić in hitting Markieff Morris: it was a stupid play. I feel bad. I’m not supposed to react that way…I thought it was going to be a take foul but I thought it was a dirty play and I needed to protect myself
Last Monday, The NBA announced that Jokic, 26, would be suspended one game without pay, an estimated $210,417 in lost wages, and Morris would be fined $50,000.
Heat All-Star Jimmy Butler was also hit with a penalty, and handed a $30,000 fine for what the NBA deemed, “attempting to escalate the altercation and failing to comply with an NBA Security interview as part of the review process pertaining to an on-court matter.”
The Nuggets travel to South Beach to once again take on the Heat on November 29. Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson said of the looming rematch, “The 29th, definitely is going to be an interesting game.”
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