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The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The Heat first participated in the NBA draft on June 28, 1988, about five months before their inaugural NBA season. In 1989, the NBA agreed with the National Basketball Players' Association to limit drafts to two rounds, an arrangement that has remained the same up the present time. Before each draft, an NBA Draft Lottery determines the first round selection order for the teams that missed the playoffs during the prior season. Teams can also trade their picks, which means that in some drafts teams may have more or less than two draft picks, although they must have at least one first-round pick every other year.