Ira Winderman and Sarah Talaray of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel report: Heat fans won't be blinded by the bright seats this season. Instead, they'll be seeing red.

After a season and a half of criticism of the bright yellow seats at AmericanAirlines Arena -- seats that accentuate, at times, the lack of fans in the lower bowl -- the Heat has opted to change the color scheme to a red that conforms to the seats in the upper bowl.

When the facility opened in 2000, the Heat championed the color scheme inside the arena as a way of playing off the team's fireball logo. However, there were concerns of how such seats would stand out if unoccupied. Because of that, the decision was made to put the yellow seats closest to the court, under the assumption those seats would be the most likely to be filled.

Instead, with the facility offering lounges and other exclusive areas to premier ticket holders, those seats often remain empty for extended stretches.

From the facilities' first days, team officials expressed concerns. Said Steve Watson, the team's former vice president for broadcast and communications, "I think it is true that the yellow seats make it more noticeable."

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Miami Heat

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