MIAMI — The Miami Heat have laid off employees as the national economic downturn has hit the AmericanAirlines Arena.

Heat team president Eric Woolworth said in a statement that the team had eliminated a small number of positions. Employees who were laid off Wednesday will receive a severance package and be eligible to be rehired.
A team spokesman said in an e-mail that the Heat weren’t commenting on the number of layoffs that occurred, but the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported about 20 employees lost their jobs.
Among those laid off was Wali Jones, the team’s community affairs liaison and a former NBA player and scout. Jones has spent about two decades with the organization.