​Tim Hardaway Jr. is back in South Florida with the Miami Heat on a one-year, $6.5 million contract, returning to the city where he went to Miami Palmetto High School. The move renews a connection to his father’s six-season stint in the Heat, but Tim Hardaway Sr. is making it clear that the younger player must forge his own path in a Heat uniform.
Hardaway Sr. stated on the Hoch, Crowder & Solana Show on WQAM that his son cannot wear his retired No. 10 jersey in Miami. He stressed that his legacy is his own and that, even though his son admires the number, it will not be coming down from the rafters. “That number is never coming down. You are not…” he said, underscoring his reluctance to see No. 10 worn again in Miami. He acknowledged the difficulty of keeping a retired number off the court, but emphasized his stance.
During his six seasons with the Heat, Hardaway Sr. averaged 17.3 points, 7.8 assists and 1.5 steals, shot 36% from three, and earned two All-Star selections along with first- and second-team All-NBA honors. The Heat retired his No. 10 in 2009. Hardaway Sr. noted that discussions about the possibility of his son wearing No. 10 occurred about five years ago when Hardaway Jr. considered signing with the Heat before eventually joining the Dallas Mavericks. Both he and his wife reportedly insisted that No. 10 would not be worn in Miami.
Hardaway Jr. has worn No. 10 in college at Michigan and with the Hawks, Mavericks, and Nuggets during his 13 NBA seasons, but he has also worn other numbers—No. 5 and No. 3 with the Knicks, and No. 8 with the Pistons. This stance from his father is not new; he expressed the same sentiment two years ago on The OGs podcast with former Heat teammates Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller.
In the end, Hardaway Jr. signed with the Pistons for a one-year deal as a free agent, and now he will try to make his mark with the Heat—without his father’s retired number in the rafters.