Aug. 4, 1999
SportsLine wire reports

MIAMI -- The Miami Heat Wednesday strengthened their frontcourt by signing veteran forward

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Otis Thorpe, who will bring 15 years of NBA experience to the defending Atlantic Division champions.

Thorpe, who will turn 37 on Thursday, averaged 11.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 49 games for the Washington Wizards last season. A native of Boynton Beach, Fla., he was a member of the 1994 NBA champion Houston Rockets.

"By acquiring Otis Thorpe, we have taken care of our first priority by fortifying our frontline," said Heat coach Pat Riley. "Last year, our rebounding was one of the primary reasons we did not advance. We had to rectify it. In Otis Thorpe, we have a quality power forward-center who can rebound, defend and score."

There had been rumors in recent days that the Heat were interested in Toronto Raptors forward Charles Oakley, who played for Riley in New York. Terms of Thorpe's contract were not disclosed, but he undoubtedly came at a lower price.

Despite their third straight Atlantic Division title, the Heat were eliminated by the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs for the second year in a row. Despite playing with a hobbled Patrick Ewing, New York's big men outplayed Miami's in the five-game series.

During the abbreviated 1999 season, Thorpe became only the 16th player in league history to record more than 15,000 points and 10,000 rebounds when he grabbed his 10,000th rebound at Chicago on April 20. He scored in double digits 28 times for the Wizards and ranked second in the league with a 54.5 shooting percentage.

The 6-foot-10, 246-pound Thorpe owns career averages of 14.9 points and 8.7 rebounds in 1,157 games, which ranks sixth among active players. He has played a full 82-game slate in nine of his 15 seasons and put together a string of 542 consecutive games -- the 13th-longest run in NBA history -- from Jan. 4, 1986-April 19, 1992.

Thorpe's career began in 1984, when the Kansas City Kings made him the ninth overall pick in the draft. He remained with the Kings, who moved to Sacramento in 1985, for four seasons until being traded to Houston just before the 1988-89 campaign.

Thorpe made his only career All-Star appearance in 1992 as a member of the Rockets and ranks fifth on Houston's all-time list with 5,010 rebounds.

On May 14, 1998, the Wizards acquired Thorpe along with Mitch Richmond from Sacramento for Chris Webber.