Of the four U.S. major league sports tournaments held in 2020, Florida has had a team in three of them, with Tampa laying claim to two of those four teams. The Miami Heat, the Tampa Bay Rays and the Tampa Bay Lightning have all made the finals in their respective leagues this year. Now how do we account for this rise to the top? Florida has never been an athletic powerhouse or had cities like Boston or LA who have multiple teams make championships in the same season. Florida also does not have notorious youth and collegiate athletic programs like high school football in Texas or Catholic school basketball in N.Y.C. for the Big Four major leagues, meaning local recruiting is not something colleges or professional teams can count on. This ascension of multiple teams comes from what each franchise has done over the last several years.
Hockey
Basketball
All three signed with the Heat during free agency, and all had been the leading franchise for their respective teams before leaving. Being able to pull that much firepower in one free agency season was unheard of. They had all been selected within the top five in their draft class in 2003 and people immediately started making parallels to Michael Jordan’s 1996 Chicago Bulls in terms of creating a dynasty. Though they only played for four seasons, the impact of the Big Three laid the foundation for Miami as someplace to be and cemented them with the Lakers, the Bulls and the Raptors as pop cultures’ most recognizable NBA teams.
This also changed the way teams structured their rosters. Instead of relying on depth spread throughout several positions both on the starting line-up and on the bench, teams need one or two stars to build around, and this is the current model used in the NBA today. Because of this, Miami was able to rely on great recruiting and when they acquired Tyler Herro in 2019, their rise was secured. While Miami had no lack of talent, they were waiting to find someone to rebuild around, and Herro became that man. Though they did end up losing to the Lakers, they have a solid base for the foreseeable future and they will be Florida’s team once again.
Baseball
Moving back to Tampa Bay, the Rays have made a surprise return to the World Series Finals after a 12-year absence. The Rays are still a young team. In a league where some teams were established in the 1800s, they were founded in 1998 and have yet to produce any big names or consistent All-Stars. Their recent success comes from their breakthrough system of developing their farm teams extensively and trading for young players yet to meet their full potential. Their payroll ranks as one of the lowest in the league, forcing them to be creative with money, but this experimentation has led them to a very respected reputation in the East, and now it will take them to battle against a Dodgers team who has been itching to get their hands on a trophy for a decade. Tampa’s management has kept out of the spotlight and stuck to what they know best, giving themselves space where they can do what they need to without major criticism. In a division where long-standing cultural icons like the Yankees and the Red Sox reign supreme in the conversation for playoff contention every year, the Rays played the long game and are back on the path to their first World Series win as a franchise.
The Future for Florida
Boston has ruled the East Coast for years in professional athletics, with all four of their professional teams either winning or competing in at least one championship in the last decade. It is hard to stop a powerhouse with a secure past and future, but Florida now has teams, and a city, that can start to chip away at that fort. Tampa also has the Buccaneers with Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and Leonard Fournette at the helm, ready to blaze a new path for the team. All of these teams have rosters that imply a successful future for their respective franchises and the Sunshine State could finally see the sun after years of rain.
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