Over the past few weeks, the biggest story surrounding the Miami Heat has been an off-the-court occurrence. Miami was allegedly on the wrong side of one of the biggest memorabilia heists in the history of professional sports in the United States. Millions worth of authentic memorabilia — including game-worn NBA Finals gear — was stolen from the organization and sold.
The United States Department of Justice offered some more information on the heist with an update earlier this month. Marcos Thomas Perez, a 62-year-old man and former employee of the Heat, has been linked to the case and is accused of taking millions in memorabilia and selling it to online brokers.
Former NBA big man Kendrick Perkins gave his two cents on the whole debacle and claimed that the thievery didn’t just happen by accident.
“I don’t want to sound like a snitch, but — he ain’t pull that s— off by himself,” Perkins said. “You know what I’m saying? The jerseys come up missing, then you know somebody that knows somebody that got access to the jerseys.”
Perez allegedly spent 25 years working for the City of Miami Police Department. To boot, he served as a security officer for the storied Heat organization from the year 2016 through 2021. After his time as a security officer for the Heat came to a close, he worked as a security employee for the NBA.
It seems to be within the realm of possibility that Perez had some inside help from someone within the Heat organization to orchestrate the heist. Perhaps there are some details about the incident that have yet to be revealed to the public.
This memorabilia heist has only drawn negative attention to a Heat team that could be in for a rough 2025-26 campaign. The Heat haven’t acquired a bona fide star via trade this offseason with the start of the coming campaign not that far away, and the team arguably has no clear face of the franchise.
Expect more information about the memorabilia heist to surface in the coming days and weeks, and with any luck, the Heat will be able to put this whole situation in the rearview mirror by the time the 2025-26 campaign starts up. Miami will kick off its 82-game slate against the Orlando Magic on Oct. 22.