Obama Congratulates Miami Heat For 2012 NBA Championship: 'Mama We Made It,' Says LeBron James At White House [PHOTOS, VIDEO]

President Obama welcomed the Miami Heat at the White House to congratulate them for becoming the 2012 NBA champions.

The Heat defeated Okhlahoma City Thunder in five games to win the world championship in June, making this their second NBA title. They defeated the Dallas Mavericks 4-2 in 2006.

LeBron James was named Finals MVP, and commented after their win, “It’s about damn time.”

At the White House on Monday, Obama congratulated the team, and James presented the President, who is a huge basketball fan himself, with a basketball signed by all the players, as well as a personalized No. 44 Miami Heat jersey.

"Everybody doing their part, is what finally put the Heat over the top," Obama said at the gathering, reports the Associated Press.

“For all the young men out there who are looking up to them all the time, for them to see somebody who cares about their kids and is there for them day in and day out, that's a good message to send," Obama went on to say, referring to a number of the players who are fathers, including James and Dwyane Wade.

President Obama also thanked them for their help at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

When James spoke, he made a moving remark that incited applause from the audience, which included the Miami Heat players’ girlfriends and wives.

"We're in the White House right now, which is like, like 'mama I made it,'" James said.

Gabrielle Union, Wade's girlfriend, posted pictures of the Heat and their significant others at the event.

Union also posted photos of herself and Wade at the White House. They complimented each others outfits by both wearing grey.

In December, James was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year, largely due to how well he played during the NBA Championship.

The last time an NBA player won the coveted award was in 2006, and it was James' Miami Heat teammate, Dwyane Wade.

“To see that I and my team and everyone around me was able to patch that roof up, to come to this point, to come to this point and receive such a prestigious award, it's huge,” James said in a statement, after it was announced he would be receiving the Sportsman of the Year accolade.

While at the White House, he also made sure to get a photo of himself and Wade alongside a portrait of former President Bill Clinton. "No caption needed!" was his photo caption.