Miami Heat to play as Vice City from Grand Theft Auto VI for single game, with new court and uniforms

The NBA provided a demonstration of just how large the marketing budget for Grand Theft Auto VI is on Friday.

The Miami Heat announced they will undergo a transformation called “A Night in Vice City” during their game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 18, a day before the video game developed by Rockstar Games releases worldwide on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.

The Heat say the game will feature a special court “built for Vice City,” the reimagining of Miami featured in GTA 6, as well as a new uniform. Merchandise from the collection is already on sale.

It’s hard to think of a time when a team has promoted any entertainment product by fully embracing the identity of a fictional city for a game, but this is also the kind of stuff to expect given the hype for GTA 6 in particular. Grand Theft Auto V was the highest-grossing media title of all time, and the announcement trailer for its sequel has garnered 296 million views as of Friday.

The Heat have also leaned into a similar identity before with their “Miami Vice”-styled jerseys, which feature a similar neon pink color palette styled after the classic cop show from the 1980s.

This game happens to be new Heat star Giannis Antetokounmpo’s first game against the Bucks, his previous home of 13 years. The Bucks traded the two-time MVP to the Heat alongside Bobby Portis in exchange for a package of players and draft picks headlined by Tyler Herro.

With Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo leading the team, the Heat are one of several contenders in a crowded Eastern Conference. Their regular season begins Oct. 21 with a home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.