The Miami Tropics were a team in the Premier Basketball League

Premier Basketball League

The Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the PBL, is a men's professional basketball minor league in the United States that began play in January 2008. The league had ten teams for the 2008 season and thirteen teams for the 2009 season. Nine teams from Canada and the United States...

that began to play in 2007 in Miami, Florida

Miami, Florida

Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...

. The team was owned by the Imperiali Organization, which also owns the Palm Beach Imperials

Palm Beach Imperials

The Palm Beach Imperials were a basketball team based in Palm Beach County, Florida. They played in the new American Basketball Association . The team was named after the ownership group, the Imperiali Organization....

. They originally played their inaugural season in the American Basketball Association

American Basketball Association (21st century)

The American Basketball Association, often abbreviated as ABA, is a semi-professional men's basketball league that was founded in 1999. The current ABA has no affiliation with the original American Basketball Association that merged with the National Basketball Association in 1976...

, but moved to the PBL with its creation in early 2007. They also represented the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 in the FIBA Americas League

FIBA Americas League

The FIBA Americas League is an international men's basketball club cup competition played annually by clubs of Americas, and is organized by FIBA Americas. The first edition started on December 4, 2007.-Format:The 16 participating clubs are divided in four groups of four teams each...

.

The original Miami Tropics played in the United States Basketball League

United States Basketball League

The United States Basketball League , often abbreviated to the USBL, was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985. The final champions are the Kansas Cagerz, who won the title game on July 1, 2007.-History:...

. In 1987, the Tropics won the USBL title, defeating the Rhode Island Gulls in the championship game. The team boasted the USBL player of the year World B. Free

World B. Free

World B. Free is an American former professional basketball player who played in the NBA from 1975–1988. Free was known as the "Prince of Midair" as well as "All-World".-Early years:...

, Mario Elie

Mario Elie

Mario Antoine Elie is an American former professional basketball player and coach. Currently, he works as an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings.-Early life and career:...

 and Anthony Grant

Anthony Grant

-External links:* at RollTide.com...

, current head coach at the University of Alabama

University of Alabama

The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....

.

The Tropics were eventually sold to John Lucas

John Lucas

John Lucas is the name of:*John Lucas , philosopher*John Lucas II , retired American professional basketball player*John Lucas III , his son, current professional basketball player...

 who parlayed his coaching experience, and two more USBL titles, into an National Basketball Association

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

coaching career.