Four Years of Heat
The 6th Annual Awards
- Best Podcast
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
"Four Years of Heat" is an 8-episode limited series narrative podcast written and hosted by South Florida native, Israel Gutierrez. The show dives deep into the behind-the-scenes story of what happened during the four years LeBron James spent with Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat. It chronicles the inside stories of “The Decision,” the loss to the Mavericks in the 2011 Finals, the back-to-back titles in 2012-13, and LeBron’s choice to go “Home” to Cleveland in 2014.
How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?
’Four Years of Heat’ is told through the perspective of journalist Izzy Gutierrez, who was embedded with the team during this historic run. But we wanted an avatar for the fans, who had a deeper emotional connection with the team. To accomplish this, we enlisted the most famous Heat fan: DJ Khaled. Each episode opens with Khaled bringing listeners inside the heart and mind of a superfan at that period in the Heat run. Then we turn the mic back to Izzy, to give a more sober recounting of the story.
The result is a show that feels authentic to the fan experience, but can be open and honest about the team’s challenges. We plan to use this model in future docuseries to prevent them from drifting too far into the territory of fan service or hagiography.
Objective
To tell the behind-the-scenes story of what happened during the four years LeBron James spent with Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the Miami Heat.
Strategy & Execution
Israel recounts his own first-hand experiences covering the team, gathering interseting perspective from players, coachees, and journalists in and around the Heat at the time.
Organizations
- iHeartPodcasts
- NBA
Links
Featured
- Israel Gutierrez
- DJ Khaled
- Ray Allen
- Dan Le Betard
- Udonis Haslem
- Rachel NIchols
- Jackie McMullan
Credits
Israel Gutierrez
Host and Scriptwriter
iHeartPodcasts
Sean Titone
Executive Producer
iHeartPodcasts
Jason English
Executive Producer
iHeartPodcasts
Peter Coughter
Producer
iHeartPodcasts
Grace Fuisz
Producer, Editor, Sound Engineer
iHeartPodcasts
Steven Weintraub
NBA Sr. Director, Content Partnerships
NBA
Jeff Sanchez
NBA Director, Influencer Content
NBA
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 6, 2024 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.
