Hotshots: Paula Winick, Miami Heat [New Miami magazine]
by Hope Katz Gibbs
New Miami magazine
Photo by Donna Victor
Design by Kevin Jolliffe
This article, part of our monthly Hotshots series, received a first place Charlie Award for Best Column from The Florida Magazine Association
BEFORE SHE WENT TO WORK for the Miami Heat, Pauline Winick wasn’t particularly fond of sports. “The only sporting event I ever attended was in the 1960s when I went with a girlfriend to seethe New York Knicks,” she says. “We both had a crush on one of the players.”
But Winick, 44, has learned a lot during her three years as executive vice president of the Miami Heat. “It’s amazing how much basketball she knows now,” says Billy Cunningham, one of the partners in the Heat.
A New York native, Winick spent most of the 1980s working in the public sector. First, as top PR person for the Metro-Dade county manager, and later as executive assistant to Miami’s city manager.
She started her own public relations business in 1987 and landed a job working with the future owners of the Miami Heat—a job that led to her current position as the Heat’s marketing maven. She is one of only two female executives among the NBA’s 27 teams (the other works for the Washington Bullets).
Among her marketing triumphs was a successful campaign to bring the NBA All-Star Game to Miami Arena last February. She courted the favor of NBA Commissioner David Stern by sending him a package of stone crabs and Key lime pie.
“It is practically unheard of for a new team to get to host the event, but Pauline went that extra step for the team,” says Paula Hanson, vice president of team services for the NBA. “She is the glue that holds all the pieces together.”
When Winick isn’t tending to the Heat, he is chairing the county’s Cultural Affairs Council, seeking funds for the county’s cultural activities. “Part of my luck has been to work on projects that make changes in Miami,” she says. “I’m proud to say I have been a part of something that will leave a legacy.”
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