MIAMI (AP) — Water bottles were getting dumped on Miami coach Erik Spoelstra from all angles in a joyous locker room after the Heat beat the Milwaukee Bucks in an NBA Cup game, and the scene caught him off-guard.
The water-pourers wanted to celebrate his 800th career win.
And Spoelstra had no idea what was happening.
“I was very confused,” Spoelstra said Wednesday night. “I was calculating that maybe we’ve qualified for the Cup. Then I’m looking around and nobody else is getting water dumped on them, and I’m like, ‘Wait a minute — what’s going on here?’”
That was when Spoelstra learned of the milestone. He's the 17th coach in NBA history to win that many games and only the third to do it with one team, joining San Antonio's Gregg Popovich and Utah's Jerry Sloan.
“It hasn’t sunk in yet because I wasn’t aware of it. It’s fitting that it comes on the eve of Thanksgiving,” Spoelstra said. "I just feel incredible gratitude for this organization and all of these years. I’m having a hell of a time. I love what I do, I love coaching, I love this profession, I love working for this organization, I love working for — and with — amazing players and staff.”
The milestone comes a few weeks after Spoelstra lost his home to a massive fire. His children were not there at the time — they were with their mother that night — and Spoelstra was returning home from a road trip when the fire started. He hasn't missed a day of work and the Heat haven't missed a beat; they're 13-6 this season, third-best in the Eastern Conference.
“It's huge. I’m trying to think of how old I was when Spo probably got his first one and then to be where he is now — he’s got 800 of them — is insane,” Heat guard Tyler Herro said. “It's great to be a part of a great organization who’s historically been one of the top.”
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
We're excited to announce our India Community Travel in Spring 2026! Join this virtual Zoom … Read moreTravel to India Information Session (Online)
“A dazzling delight for all ages” Read moreRodger's & Hammerstein's Cinderella
Dirk van Ulden said:
LadyofShalott said:
Love Mr. Stanford!! Wonderful professor, nice guy
Mike Harris said:
You are correct. Right on!
Dirk van Ulden said:
I always thought that his disorder was race baiting. But, they discovered another one?
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.