Rockstar Games is pulling out all the stops for the biggest video game launch in history — and this time it needs a bigger court.
The Miami Heat announced Friday that the team will play an entire NBA game under the Vice City name. On November 18, the night before Grand Theft Auto VI launches, the Heat will host the Milwaukee Bucks at the Kaseya Center on a never-before-seen custom court, wearing a brand-new uniform designed just for the occasion. The whole night — airing nationally on ESPN — is called “A Night in Vice City.”
It’s a partnership between the Heat, the NBA, Rockstar Games, and Take-Two Interactive, and it’s more than a patch on a jersey. The arena will be dressed up as GTA 6’s neon-soaked take on Miami, with special game-night programming, one-night-only activations, and a Vice City merchandise collection of T-shirts, hoodies, and hats that’s already on sale.
The team quietly kicked off the campaign on October 1, lighting up a neon “Welcome to Vice City” sign on the arena’s roof, and says more details will arrive in the coming weeks in coordination with Rockstar.
There’s a deliciously meta twist to all of this. The Kaseya Center already exists inside GTA 6 — it appeared in the game’s first trailer and returns as the “Sahara Arena,” home court of the fictional Vice City Narcos. So on November 18, the real arena will host a real Vice City night while standing in as a Vice City arena inside the game. Real and virtual Miami are about to share the same address.
This isn’t the Heat’s first rodeo with vice, either. Their pink-and-blue “Vice” City Edition jerseys, first launched in 2018, were a phenomenon — the original design reportedly sold more units than every other NBA team’s inaugural City Edition jersey combined. Playing under the Vice City name itself, though, is a first.
The timing is no accident. GTA 6 launches November 19 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, after more than a decade of anticipation since GTA 5 (2013). Rockstar locked in the date back in November 2025 after a spring delay, and the marketing machine has been accelerating ever since — a recent extended gameplay look reportedly pulled over 31 million views in its first four days. Miami Beach itself has already partnered with Rockstar to promote the game.
For one night, though, it’s Vice City versus the Bucks on national television, 24 hours before launch. That’s the kind of launch-eve hype machine only the biggest entertainment release ever could pull off.
Sources:
USA Today — Heat to host Vice City night to promote ‘GTA 6’ and Giannis game vs Bucks
ESPN — Miami Heat announce ‘A Night in Vice City’ theme ahead of GTA VI release