Erik Spoelstra will be the head coach of the Miami Heat for an extended period of time.
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that Spoelstra has agreed to an eight-year, $120 million deal extension with the Heat. The deal, worth a total of $120 million, is the biggest in sports history in North America for a coach.
With a $15 million salary, Spoelstra will rank among the highest-paid sports coaches on an annual basis. In the NBA, the only head coach earning more than Spoelstra is Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs, who makes $19 million a year. Only Bill Belichick ($25 million) and Sean Payton ($18 million) make more money as NFL coaches than Spoelstra, with Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks earning $15 million annually to tie Spoelstra’s salary.
Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico claims that year.
After starting his tenure as the team’s video coordinator in 1995, the 53-year-old head coach succeeded the illustrious Pat Riley as head coach in 2008–09. Since then, the Heat have been a contender for the playoffs. In fact, in Spoelstra’s 15 complete seasons as head coach, the Heat have only missed the playoffs three times.
Over time, they have become one of the sports world’s most reliable teams. During the much-discussed “Big Three” period with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, Spoelstra has guided the Heat to two titles and six Finals appearances, including two in the last three years alone.
