President Clinton takes in Heat-Magic game

MIAMI — Former President Bill Clinton did something Sunday that many celebrities do when visiting South Florida.

He watched the Miami Heat.

With the best seat in the house — of course — Clinton arrived shortly before tip-off of the Heat's game against the Orlando Magic, even getting his hands on a deflected ball late in the first half and smiling as he flipped it back onto the court.

Clinton sat just to the right of Heat managing general partner Micky Arison, the two chatting just about nonstop during play while sitting near midcourt at a table only inches from the sideline. The former president's visit was not announced beforehand, and it wasn't immediately clear if players from either team knew if Clinton was going to be in attendance.

He took his seat shortly before the Heat starting lineup was introduced to the crowd, and at times Clinton seemed just like any other fan.

He was laughing during a time-out when the Heat "Golden Oldies" — a dance troupe composed of older citizens — performed, applauded when LeBron James threw an alley-oop pass to Dwyane Wade, turned to look skyward at the overhead video screen for replays and pored over stat sheets during timeouts.

Clinton has long enjoyed many sports, and also played golf in Colombia last week at a Nationwide Tour event.

Heat executives Nick Arison and Alonzo Mourning met briefly with Clinton in Haiti last month, discussing ongoing earthquake relief efforts. Clinton and Mourning chatted that day for a few minutes about a number of other topics, including the Heat's season to that point and how much the former president enjoyed the retired Heat center's book.

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February 19, 2012 05:18 PM EST

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