Dwyane Wade — A Hero On and Off the Court

Last night we bid farewell to one of basketball’s greatest, Dwyane Wade. And while his Miami Heat ended up getting blown out by the Brooklyn Nets, it felt anything but a loss for the greatest athlete to grace Miami sports. Wade recorded 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists — the fifth triple-double of his career, his first since February 2011 and was watched alongside a frantic Brooklyn crowd which included the likes of his banana boat buddies (LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Paul). The 10th assist that gave Wade his triple-double was a jump shot made by none other than Mr. 305, Udonis Haslem, putting a Hollywood-script-like ending to a storybook career for #3.

Now, us Miami (and NBA) fans move on to life after Dwyane Wade. A life which many, like me, do not know. As said eloquently by Miami Heat broadcaster Eric Reid last night, “You either grew up with Dwyane Wade, or you grew old with him.” In my case, and with many modern NBA fans, I grew up with Wade. He was my childhood. I started watching sports when I was 8 years-old, in 2003, as I crept out of my playroom to watch the Miami Dolphins season opener with my father. From there, I moved onto to other sports and other Miami teams. With that came the Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade. What I, and many of us, watched that season was the emergence of what would become the 3rd greatest shooting guard of all time. In particular, in the 2004 playoffs, where in his first playoff game against the New Orleans Hornets, he hit a floater to give Miami the win and 1–0 series lead.

First playoff game-winner in your first playoff game. Unreal.

It was a sign of things to come, as Wade led Miami to a 1st round series win against the Hornets, 4–3, before Miami took on the 1st seeded Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. From the start, it was an uphill battle against a Pacers squad that boasted the best regular season record that year at 61–21. But, even in a 4–2 losing effort in the series, like last night, it felt anything but a loss for Wade and the Heat. Wade shined throughout the series, hitting clutch shots, dunking over Jermaine O’Neal, and proving he was going to be a forced to be reckoned with.

And he was.

And yes, the Heat’s acquisition of superstar Shaquille O’Neal in the 2004 offseason was a great help, but it didn’t guarantee that Wade would end up having a 2004–2005 season like he, averaging 24.1 points (an 8 point increase from his rookie season), 5.2 rebounds (1.2 increase from rookie season) and 6.8 assists (2.3 increase from rookie season) per game. Wade then led Miami to back-to-back series sweeps in the 2005 playoffs against the New Jersey Nets and Washington Wizards, respectively, before facing the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals. After being up 3–2 and being one win away from its first NBA Finals, Wade suffered a rib injury late in game 6 and the Heat would lose the series 4–3.

Man, did that one hurt. I can remember the pain I felt as a fan, as I stormed up to my room, closed the bathroom door and cried. I look back on that and want to slap my 9 year-old-self and tell him to not worry, great times are ahead. Trust Dwyane Wade.

Flashforward one year and those tears of sadness and despair turned to tears of joy and jubilation as Wade put on arguably the single greatest individual performance in NBA Finals history, rallying the Heat down from 0–2 deficit to defeat the Dallas Mavericks 4–2.

The 2006 Finals ring through my memories often, as I am sure they do with most Heat fans. Not only was it the first championship in Heat history, but the way it was won made it all the sweeter. Finding themselves down 0–2 in the series and down 13 points midway through the 4th quarter in game 3, things seemed over. I remember falling into my beanbag chair, crying and punching it, as I feared yet again that Miami would meet the same fate it did in the 2005 ECF.

It was then something magical happened. It was Dwyane Wade. Uplifting his team, carrying them on his back, leading them to not only a comeback victory in game 3, but victories in the next three games as well, giving the Miami Heat its first Larry O’Brien Trophy.

Mike Breen’s exclamation of “The Miami Heat! They’ve done it! They’ve won their first championship in franchise history!” still ring through my ears today as loudly today as they did that faithful summer night 13 years ago.

And so, rather than sparing you the great details of what Wade’s career over the next 13 years (add accolades), I want to halt the specifics of it with the 2006 Finals, because it was those six games that encapsulated Dwyane Wade the basketball player and Dwyane Wade the person. A man who faced the odds in life from growing up in the Southside of Chicago, not getting but a few scholarship offers out of high school, being put on academic probation at Marquette, seeing his mom put in prison at a young age, etc. All of this in turn prepared him for the situation where his back was against the wall and no one believed he could do it in 2006.

Maybe not everyone believed he could make it in life or win the 2006 NBA Finals. But you know who did? He did. His belief rang through, resonated with those around him and uplifted not only his team, but the city of Miami.

Yes, the city of Miami. His city. Miami-Wade County.

You see, for those of us who grew up as with Wade as Miami fans, Wade is the one who has taught us and has had to teach us time-and-time again about the process of winning and what it takes to be a champion on the court and in life.

Prior to Wade’s arrival, Miami was a football city, run by memories of Dan Marino, the 1972 undefeated season, and the dominant Miami Hurricanes. Now, it’s a basketball city. Yes, part of that is due to the 0 playoffs wins by the Miami Dolphins, 0 playoff series wins by the Florida Panthers, 0 ACC Championships for the Miami Hurricanes, and 0 playoff appearances for the Florida Marlins since the end of 2003, but the large part of it is due to Wade and his dominance on the court and his grace and humility off the court.

He embraced the city and the city embraced him. That’s what makes him Miami’s greatest athlete. His contributions to the community ring far and wide.

But it’s not just his contributions to the city, but it has what he has done for people. People like those shown in the emotional Budweiser commercial released on Tuesday. People who showed up from far and wide to watch him play for one final time this season, whether in Miami or at an away stadium.

Or just regular people, like me. A kid who grew up wanting for nothing but found himself most wanting to be like a basketball player who he had never met and whose background differs far from mine. How can that be? That someone like Dwyane Wade be the person I look up to the most?

It’s a tough question to answer and I don’t know if I even have a full answer. All I know is what I have felt these past couple of nights watching Wade play his last two games. Tears streamed down my face at the end of both just like they did when he brought Miami its first championship in 2006.

I have felt sadness in his retirement and happiness that I was able to experience all 16 years of his greatness. I have reminisced on growing up watching him night in and night out go into battle, putting his heart on the line, falling down 7 times and getting up 8.

I have looked back on all my Wade memborialla, all the Converse signature sneakers I made my parents buy me, the jerseys, the shirts, the posters, etc. All for Wade. All because he made me believe I could do something greater. Maybe that sounds corny, but it’s true.

Wade said in his statement to the Miami Heat crowd as he addressed them for the last time, “Wade County, I love you.” We know that to be true, Dwyane, but I, and all us, want you to know, is that we love you. We love you for hard work and effort on and off the court, your humility, your genuineness, the championships, all the memories.

We love you because you never changed who you were. You were always and have always been about the team, which you emphasized in your last interview in Miami, and last night where you dished out 10 assists and apologized for shooting 28 times in your final game.

Thank you isn’t enough. It never will be.

All I, and we, have is love. Love for you and for your family.

And so, if I ever falter or feel weak in where I am going in life, I will look to my Wade jerseys that hang in room and persist and know you would do exactly the same.

Nothing but lov3 for you, D.

They’ll always be a key under the mat for you.