2004 Summer - Miami Heats Popularty soars with more Televised games

Last year the Heat played in only two nationally televised games, including one on Telemundo. Tim Donovan, the team's vice president of sports media relations, and his assistant, Rob Wilson, called NBA beat writers across the country to try to convince them that Wade was a legitimate rookie of the year candidate. "They all laughed at us, said we were blowing smoke," Donovan recalls. "We said, 'No, trust us, he's the real deal.' "

But what a difference six months makes. Today, at the season's midpoint, Wade ranks in the NBA's top 10 in scoring and assists and he joined O'Neal in the NBA All-Star Game.

Now Donovan has more media requests for Wade than he has free time to talk about himself. "This season, to a man, those same NBA beat writers are saying, 'Boy, you weren't kidding about this kid's talent,' " Donovan says.

NEXT - 2004 Summer changes - Shaq joins Miami Heat