Heat upgrade Andy Elisburg to VP of Basketball Operations: ‘He’s so deserving of this promotion’

The Heat administration made an important and long-awaited decision this week, as they’ve recently announced that Andy Elisburg has been promoted to Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, which is expected to be fulfilled as a General Manager role.

Franchise President Pat Riley was the first to deliver the news and explained in detail why Andy is the perfect man for the job.

“Andy is so deserving of this promotion,” he said. “Working together for 28 years has brought so many great transactions that have improved the franchise multiple times over the years, both on and off the court. More importantly, Andy’s knowledge and work ethic are second to none, he’s been involved with everything we do at the HEAT and we look forward to continued success.”

NEWS: The Miami HEAT have promoted Andy Elisburg to Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations/General Manager.

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) July 20, 2023

The team’s statement continues by showing off Elisburg’s impressive credentials for over three decades working for the South Beach club. “A HEAT original employee of 35 years, will continue to assist CEO Nick Arison and President Pat Riley in the management of all aspects of Miami’s basketball organization, including salary cap administration, talent acquisition, league compliance and the day-to-day business of basketball operations.

“He originally joined the franchise in its inaugural 1988 season and recently served as Senior Vice President, Basketball Operations/General Manager for the last 10 years,” it added.

Just to count some of their many achievements together, Andy has been a part of three NBA Championships, seven Eastern Conference titles, 24 playoff runs and 16 division titles. The Miami team currently holds the longest-active streak in the NBA for being the squad that hasn’t missed the postseason in consecutive campaigns over the last 20 years.

Both Elisburg and coach Erik Spoelstra are content with the potential displayed by their young core this summer

After reaching the NBA Finals this past season, they’ve spent the last month trying to negotiate a trade for Blazers star Damian Lillard. While at it, they can’t help but feel satisfied with the potential shown by their newest two rookies during the Summer League.

Elisburg feels like their No. 18 overall pick Jaime Jáquez Jr. already fits less than one month after drafting him out of UCLA. “I think he’s our type of guy,” he said during a Summer League broadcast.

“I think he comes from the same kind of ethos that we think we value, with players that we value. He has that kind of competitiveness and the work ethic that you want to see. But I think he also has an understanding of the game of basketball,” he added.

As for sophomore Nikola Jovic, coach Erik Spoelstra couldn’t hold his excitement to see how much his player has developed during his time in Florida.

“There’s a lot to like about his development so far,” the trainer said last week. “… You see the rebounding, you see the off-ball awareness defensively, his ability to take a rebound off the glass and push it in transition. These are skills that are really tough to teach. He has great vision.”