Mike Miller given a rousing sendoff by the Miami Heat

So, this is sort of the exact opposite of how the Lakers and Dwight Howard said goodbye.

The Miami Heat amnestied Mike Miller on Tuesday, jettisoning his two-year, $12.8-million contract from their salary cap. But, the Heat made sure everyone knew they waived Miller purely for financial reasons, not because they were dissatisfied with his contributions on the court.

On Thursday, the Heat ran a full-page ad in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel thanking Miller for his time with the team.

“You are a champion both on and off the court,” the ad says.

Pretty classy move by the Heat.

Heat center Chris Bosh also spoke out for Miller, telling the Sun-Sentinel, “We can’t find a replica of Mike Miller. All we can do is just hope to make up the ground that we’ve lost. Our challenge has started already, pretty much, because we’ve lost a significant part of our team.”

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