Wade County
Dwyane Wade is a special individual who had done special things during his career. The 2006 Finals, both rings with LeBron and his 2009–10 season are all notable standouts. Wade chose to retire at the start of season with a focus on spending time with his family and developing his son, Zaire Wade, into an NBA-calibre prospect. Throughout Wade’s entire career, there has been a common thread which is not always noticeable, sacrifice. There has never been a player of Wade’s talent who has sacrificed their game in order to make team-mates comfortable or for the good of the team. In retrospect, it is unreal to think about, he allowed LeBron to run Miami’s offence as he knew it would get the best out of the King, he was self-aware enough to acknowledge Shaq as the alpha dog but challenged him when it mattered. This is not to say that Wade took away his entire game for the good of the team because he didn’t, the Varejao dunk and the hundreds of lightning quick slashes to the rim gave Wade his name, Flash.
The story of Dwyane Wade is a well-worn rags to riches story told in the NBA, he was an unheralded recruit out of Marquette who had a tough childhood before eventually becoming an NBA Champion who was father to a wonderful family. In that story, there was certain actions which could go overlooked. His desire to give back to where he came from, he established a ministry for his mother and tithes a percentage of his income every single year to the ministry so that it can continue to benefit the community in Chicago. For those in the inner city, Wade’s support is immeasurable. It provides real, quantifiable help while also showing that Wade does not forget his home or the hardships that he went through during his childhood.
The other chapter that is ignored is arguably the most recent chapter, his actions in regards to the Parkland School Shooting. Parkland was an American tragedy, seventeen people were senselessly killed and re-lit the discussion around gun control. The discussion about the shooting quickly became less about the people involved and became more of a symbol of America’s infatuation with weapons. In a way, it felt that those who died and their families became after-thoughts as the incident was politicised and manipulated by politicians, government officials and the media. Wade never forgot the families and spent time with the victims, there was no obligation for him to do so, he chose to out of compassion for those who had suffered. The lasting picture was his acknowledgment of Joaquin Oliver, a student who was murdered in the shooting. He wrote Oliver’s name on his shoes and provided a Wade Miami Vice Jersey for Joaquin Oliver to be buried in. At that moment in time, Dwyane Wade related to them on a human level instead of treating the victims as a statistic.
Apart from his impact on the community, Wade also killed it on the court. From the day he was drafted, fans knew what they were getting with Dwyane Wade, a player who gave his all every single night and never cheated the fans out of their money. Wade’s most noticeable trait was his inner grit, he never seemed able to let games go when the Heat were down fifteen or ten which eventually led to arguably his greatest accomplishment as an NBA player, the 2006 NBA Finals.
The 2006 NBA Finals featured two icons of the era in the form of Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki, it was one of the first tilts between these two players who had a rivalry throughout their entire career. The key takeaway from this particular play-off series was that Dwyane Wade had a coming out party in which he announced himself as one of the best players in the NBA. During that series, Dwyane Wade averaged 34.7/7.8/3.8 as he took over the series and became the deciding factor. There was a key point in the series where Wade’s influence became noticeable on a veteran team with big personalities like Shaq and Gary Payton.
The Heat were down 2–0 in the series and were facing another loss when they were down thirteen with only six minutes to play. A Dallas victory in the American Airlines Arena would have effectively decided the series, no team has ever come to win a Finals series after losing the first three games. Wade decided he wasn’t going out like that and emptied the entire clip. He was a force of nature as he took over and dragged Miami over the finishing line and stole a game out of Dallas’ hands that they expected to win. It was an important psychological blow against a Dallas team which had faced criticisms for their perceived ‘softness’.
From that point onwards, it seemed to come together for Wade as Pat Riley took control and managed the series. Wade was the primary scoring threat, Shaq was the enforcer who locked down the middle and prevented Dallas from getting easy inside buckets. It was the typical Pat Riley that has been maximised to its full potential, the team has a tough defensive front-court and a back-court star who could carry an offence. Despite the fact that Miami were down in the series, 2–1, it felt as if they were the more assured side and were more comfortable with the pressure.
The performance in Game 3 also seemed to do wonders to Wade’s psyche much like the 2004 series against the Pacers in his rookie season. Although, Miami lost that series Dwyane understood that he could belong at that level if he worked hard and perfected his craft shot by shot. In 2006, it seemed that Dwyane had become comfortable being the Heat’s leader and the player who all of the pressure rested on. In Game 4, Miami dealt another humiliating blow to Dallas in which they held the Mavericks to just 31.6% from the field and won by twenty four points. Wade had 36 points on efficient shooting and seemed to be locked in to a Jordan level of intensity.
The Heat eventually knocked off the Mavericks in six and Wade became the first player from the 2003 draft class to win a championship. After all of the focus on LeBron and Carmelo, the so-called ‘Third Wheel’ proved himself at the highest level. It was not Cleveland or Denver who had won a ring but Miami with Wade leading the charge. In terms of performances in the Finals, there have been very few runs that are comparable, LeBron in 2016 is the one of the individual performances which could be considered in the same breath. The incredible S.L Price put it best in his 2006 profile on Dwyane Wade.
‘The Chicago-born, Jordan-worshipping Wade made it safe, for perhaps the first time since number 23 retired, to compare a guard with Michael and not risk embarrassment.’ — S.L Price, Sports Illustrated, Sportsman of the Year
From that point on, Wade was established as one of the best players in the league except nothing seemed to change even as Miami shifted around him. Shaq was traded, Zo and GP both retired and then it was just D-Wade and Udonis Haslem. Miami suffered massively and never could seem to reach the competitive heights that they had reached in 2006, the contributions of D-Wade and UD were never in doubt but injuries killed Wade. For both 2006–2007 and 2007–2008, Wade played fifty one games in each season. There were serious doubts over Wade’s durability and whether he could elevate the lottery-bound Heat back to greatness. The 2008 off-season was big for Dwyane Wade in many ways. He had to recover from injuries and return to being the force of nature that he was for six magical weeks in 2006 and he also had to deal with questions in regards to his free agency.
It may seem unthinkable that Dwyane Wade was dogged with free agency rumours in 2008/2009 but the nature of his extension in 2006 invited these questions. Wade signed a three-year extension with Heat which would coincided with the arguably the greatest free agency class of the 21st century. LeBron, Chris Bosh, A’Mare and Carlos Boozer were just some of the notable free agents who could have joined together with Wade to form a super-team that could compete with the best. Moreover, there were also other suitors who Miami were right to be afraid. Chicago had a blooming squad led by Derrick Rose that would have welcomed more scoring and play-making for a team that was heavily dependent on Rose.
Chicago in 2008 had ties with Wade that were deep-rooted and were undeniable. Wade grew up in Robbins, Illinois but he lived his early childhood on the south-side of Chiacgo. There was the idea permeating that Wade could come home and bring another championship back to Chicago for the first time since Michael Jordan. Dwyane Wade grew up in the cathedral of Michael Jordan. He was present for the ‘Flu Game’ and the Miracle in the Garden against Larry Bird. The Bulls and Jordan specifically was a point of reverence for Wade and special symbol. With this in mind, the idea of Wade leaving Miami did not seem far-fetched.
Wade’s injury did not prevent him from playing Beijing as part of the Redeem Team in which his comeback from injury started. To paraphrase Nipsey Hustle’s famous saying ‘The Marathon Started’, Wade was an important part of the ‘Redeem Team’. He had experienced defeat in 2004 with the USA Basketball Team and was one of few talents on the ‘Redeem Team’ who had won an NBA championship, he understood high-stakes moments. It’s not hard to see where Wade’s newfound fire came from.
The ‘Redeem Team’ like the ‘Dream Team’ pitted star against star in highly competitive practices, it was iron sharpening iron while also forming a camaraderie between players who were not necessarily best of friends. Moreover, the ‘Redeem Team’ was important for Wade in terms of bringing him into contact with like-minded people. From a young age, Wade has proclaimed that he loved the grind, that the work meant more than actually being declared the best in the world. On Team USA, he found himself working with kindred spirits in the form of LeBron and Kobe.
In terms of relationships with Wade, LeBron and Kobe were chalk and cheese. LeBron has always enjoyed a brother-like relationship with Dwyane dating back to the NBA draft combine prior to the 2003 draft. Kobe, on the other hand, had a more nuanced relationship with D-Wade. Wade came into the league looking at Kobe as the gold standard for the shooting guard, the Mamba had won three championships wearing Laker Gold while being one of the top basketball players in the world. Eventually, Wade rounded into a veritable rival for Kobe and someone who Kobe deeply respected. Surrounded by these work-horses, Wade became focused on the grind again, he was hitting the gym at 04:00 with Kobe and putting in work. The fire had seemingly returned as Team USA steam-rolled every single team on their way to another gold medal.
The 2008–09 season for Wade was a vintage. In many ways, it is similar to a Napa Valley red wine. At the time of production, it was not widely appreciated but eventually grew into being historically recognised. Wade’s season in 2008–09 was not as regarded as it should have been. In many ways, all of the other amazing individual seasons overshadowed Wade’s brilliance again. In Cleveland, you had LeBron carrying the top-ranked defensive team on offence and defence. Cleveland went 66–16 behind the contributions of James. In Wade’s backyard, there was another superb individual season going on. The Orlando Magic went 59–23 off the back of Dwight Howard’s supreme defensive abilities and scoring. The Magic had formed into legitimate contenders with the 4-out, 1-in system that SVG loved to run. As a result of this, Howard’s 20/13/3 were viewed to be MVP-calibre statistics as they had a tangible impact and were instrumental in the Magic being contenders.
Then in the Western Conference, both Kobe and Chris Paul were having outstanding seasons. Bryant at the age of 30 had led the Lakers to a 65–17 record and a top berth in the Western Conference. It was a hugely impressive achievement for Kobe as he provided the majority of the Lakers’ scoring and consistently made difficult shot after difficult shot. He had led the Lakers to an impressive after there being multiple injuries to his co-stars throughout the season, it felt like the crystallisation of Kobe’s abilities. The scoring, the defence and the bloody-minded determination. The other impressive Western Conference candidate was Chris Paul. Paul is another brother-like figure to Wade and he was playing out of his mind for New Orleans. He averaged 23/11/5.5/2.8 on efficient shooting. The numbers go someway in explaining how good Paul was in that season but it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was the ultimate floor general in terms of controlling the game and creating opportunities for his team-mates. He made all of his team-mates look great and was arguably the best point guard in the NBA at just 23.
Despite this, Wade’s accomplishments were arguably more impressive than of his colleagues, he led the league in scoring, was 2nd in steals and PER. From a historic perspective, the statline of 30.2/5/7.5/2.2/1.3 is unbelievable in terms of indicating impact on the offensive and defensive end. He became the first player to get 100 blocks plus in a season for a player who is 6'5 or less. He was the Heat’s leading scorer, best perimeter defender and best shot-creator on a team that was devoid of a talented co-star. The best player that Wade could rely on was Udonis Haslem, the other players were either too young or old to be of any use. Even still, the Heat finished with a record of 43–39 which was a twenty six game improvement on the prior year record. The impact of Wade’s play was undeniable and he was arguably the deserving MVP.
However, the regular season success did not translate into post-season success. Miami were bounced in the first-round in both 2009 and 2010 by the Hawks and Celtics respectively. The key difference between the Heat and these other squads was that the Heat only had one All-Star calibre talent whereas the Celtics had four All-Stars. It was almost impossible for one player to defeat a collection of talented players. The ugly head of free agency reared its head and the idea of Wade leaving Miami became more and more real.
In 2010, Chicago had matured from being a young talented team into being a legitimate Eastern Conference force. Thibodeau had built a team culture that prioritised team defense and togetherness. In Chicago, Thibodeau had developed his own version of ‘Ubuntu’ with Rose, Noah and Deng. Wade would have been the perfect addition as a player who had won a title and could operate as a play-maker for a team that depended massively on D-Rose to create offence. Moreover, the Knicks had space for two max-free agents while also having an interesting collection of young talent. There was the possibility that Wade and LeBron could team up together in New York and use the trade assets to acquire a third star who could be the final piece in the Celtic crushing machine.
However, Wade opted to stay when he realised that bringing the ‘King’ to Miami was not a far-fetched thought. During the free agency process, Miami did not materialise into a credible destination for LeBron until the latter stages. There were rumours flying around about New York and Chicago until the prospect of Pat Riley, Wade and a championship winnning organisation persuaded LeBron to come to South Beach. The Heat promised the ability to win a chip, something that James had missed out on for his first seven years in the league. The only criticism that was used to beat his potential legacy into a pulp by hot-take artists. Wade brought his friend to Miami and led the Heat to another huge free agent.
Chris Bosh had been part of talented but under-performing Raptors for best part of a decade, he had felt that the front office was not entirely competent as they sought to put a team around one of the best forwards in the NBA. He heard the call from his friend, his team-mate in 2006 and jumped on the chance of finally becoming a NBA Champion.
From this point onwards, Wade went under the microscope. His relationship with LeBron was analysed to a dissection-esque level and he became one of the most-watched stars in the NBA as the Heat were accused of destroying basketball. In 2011, Wade was his normal self but the Heat struggled in terms of acclimating their big personalities. It was Wade’s franchise so natural deference fell to him but LeBron was the best player and it was important to get Bosh shots so he would stay engaged in games and would be effective. It was a quagmire that was difficult for Erik Spolestra to sort out especially under the pressure that the Heat were under to be a dominant force who would steam-roll their way to a title.
It never really sorted itself out, Miami operated a ‘my-turn, your-turn’ isolation system with LeBron and Wade that did not fully take advantage of the talents of both players. It meant that the offence was stilted and there was not a natural flow to Miami that you saw out of other teams like Dallas or Chicago. The lack of a clear chain of command meant that there was confusion which kills championship teams. For Miami, it manifested in their worst nightmares. LeBron became oddly passive on the greatest stage of them all. Wade was a killer but Bron didn’t turn up which meant that Miami’s task against a together Dallas side was impossible. The Dallas Mavericks won the chip and finally Dirk was vindicated in his rivalry against Dwyane Wade, two players who had very real animosity towards each other.
The Wade and Nowitzki was notably frosty until both players’ final season where they eventually came round to slightly warmer relations. It stemmed the majority of Wade’s career and revolved around two title series that made legacies and broke legacies. The first series in 2006 was dogged with controversy, there was a lot of criticism about the officiating of the series especially the number of times that Dwyane Wade made it to the free throw line. Wade was seemingly going to the line more than Dallas’ entire team on calls that were a little bit suspect, for Dallas it felt like the NBA was trying to take the series away from the better team. There was legitimate heat between the two franchises which crystallised in the 2011 NBA Finals, five years after 2006.
2011 was a different series, Dallas was not truly dominant and did not kill team-mates like they did from 2006–2008. They were well-rounded and well-coached but to many talking heads, they were no match for the Heat. Wade added fuel to the fire by mocking Dirk’s flu and seemingly believing that it would be easy to take down the German. All it did was motivate Dirk and the Heat lost a series that they thought they should have won. Even though Dirk was a self-deprecating and somewhat goofy character, he could not countenance the mockery and the two became rivals despite the fact that they played different positions.
As rivalries go, it enhanced both players’ reputations and provided some needle within their relationship. It was that last piece of motivation for Dirk as he conquered Miami and beat Wade on the biggest stage of them all. For Wade, it was a stain on his legacy as the Heat came under plenty of criticism for being a team that lost to a team that was inferior on paper. The 2011 loss led to a lot of soul-searching for the Heat and personally for Wade, one of his defining characteristics leading to team success.
For the latter half of his career, Dwyane Wade has not necessarily been known as this uncompromising alpha dog who was the unquestioned leader of the team. It is the opposite of that in fact, Wade sacrificed part of his own game so that the Heat could win the championship and achieve his second ring. It is a precedent set by Wade that has been followed by future super-teams with players like Curry who chose to fit in so that another star could be accommodated. In the case of Dwyane Wade, he allowed LeBron to take the reigns of the offence and he played more off-ball in a role where he cut more instead of handling the ball. He was self-aware enough to know that the fit issues stemmed from the alternate isolation style of play and lack of leadership. Wade stepped back to become the heart of the team while LeBron was its on-court leader.
For Wade, the injuries that he had accumulated from years of slashing to the rim finally came to a head. The various knee injuries and surgeries on said knees meant that as a player he was diminished. He didn’t quite have the athleticism to flash to the rim before the defence realised anymore so he had to become more of an off-ball option. Dwyane has said that this was one of the darkest periods of his career as he was dealing with pain every single day while also having to deal with the pressure that arises from being a super-team.
It was an interesting period for Dwyane Wade as he was winning championships, remained beloved by the Heat but he was suffering personally. He had a ton of injuries that were tough to work through and he became a second star on a team that he was previously the first option on. It became very difficult to drag himself out of bed and come to terms with who he was every single day. Since the 2006 championship, Wade had always been regarded as one of the best shooting guards in the NBA but now the injuries had reduced his abilities and there were other guards being talked about in the same hushed revered tones. Harden, Klay, Beal, these were all of the rising stars at the 2. During the injury-hit championships, Dwyane went from being in his prime to being an elder statesman who was deeply respected but no longer the same type of killer.
It’s hard for an athlete to deal with this self-realisation about themselves, to fully understand who they are. For a player who had reached the heights that Dwyane did, it’s hard to understand your limitations. Paul George has spoke about this a great deal after his broken leg in 2014, he talked about watching himself on Youtube to see that the same player remained, to see the skill-set which had made him one of the best forwards in the NBA.
Eventually, the era of Miami Red ended as the Heat were dispatched of by the Spurs in truly dominant fashion. The Heat looked over-matched as the Spurs zipped the ball around and secured a fifth and final ring for Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. Miami’s players were exhausted physically and mentally, there was no possible way that the team could mount another title charge. At the end of the 2013–14 season, the Heat’s players were spent and they did not have the assets to acquire fresh talent who could spur on another run, all of their draft picks had been used in order to build a roster that could support the ‘Big Three’. And, LeBron entered arguably the biggest free agency of his career.
Unlike 2010, LeBron was much wiser and the championship rings that he had earned in Miami indicated that he had the experience to build another champion from the ground-up. There were many intriguing suitors for James which is what made Miami’s fear that the King could leave more real. Moreover, there were issues regarding their other All-Stars. Wade’s contract needed renegotiation and Bosh was a free agent who was done with Miami. CB had given everything in the pursuit of a championship and yet was the villain every time something went wrong with the ‘Big Three’. It was hard to justify another few years in Miami especially when there was a burgeoning star in Texas who could be teamed up in the form of Harden.
For any other super-team, this wouldn't be an issue but Miami was structured in an unique that led to their detriment. All of the ‘Big Three’ was signed in 2010 in a package deal of sorts as they were all represented by the same agency, CAA. CAA had structured the contracts so that each player would receive the max and so that the contracts would expire at the same time. The thinking behind of this being that the three players could be kept together as a package deal and then represented to another willing buyer at the end of four years. In 2010, Wade was represented by Hank Thomas (CAA), Bosh was represented by Leon Rose (CAA) and James was represented by both Rose and Rich Paul (CAA). In 2012, CAA’s monopoly on the max players ended.
Rich Paul, a James confidante and trusted advisor dating back to his years in Cleveland left CAA and created his own agency with James called Klutch Sports. As an agency, Klutch created some distance on the business side of the transactions. Riley did not enjoy the same type of relationship with Rich Paul that he did with Hank Thomas. For Riley, James’ inner circle became impenetrable. As a result of this and a desire to return, LeBron left Miami and the Big Three era was over.
Dwyane Wade would be the number one option again for a Miami team that was reeling from the departure of James. For Miami, it was unknown waters as they tried to rebuild without many draft picks or assets that could aid the rebuild. The Heat made the most of limited assets and picked up Goran Dragic for two first-round picks in a three team trade. Dragic had been an All-NBA Third Team in the previous season for a Phoenix team that had a surplus of point guards. At the end of the season, Dragic requested a trade as he was unhappy at the tumult which had been caused by the fight for minutes and also the fact that Eric Bledsoe was good enough to be a starting point guard. There was a looming threat that Bledsoe would be made a starter and Dragic’s free agency aspirations would be stunted.
In Dragic, Miami gained a floor general who would create great looks for both Wade and Bosh. Miami did not make the play-offs and it was clear that Wade was on the down-turn of his career. Although he averaged 21.5/4.8/3.5, Wade’s efficiency fell off a cliff. He only shot 48.3% EFG compared to 55.1% from the year before. The athleticism was gone, Wade couldn't drive to the rim with the quickness that he used so he began to change his game and compensate with intelligence.
As a player, Dwyane Wade has always been an intelligent scorer but with his age and injuries, he developed other aspects of his game. His mid-range jumper became a lot more varied and he depended a lot more on his fadeaway jumper to score the ball. Moreover, Wade changed his finishing around the rim to rely more on craftiness instead of speed. It became a lot more of using changes in pace and direction to get layups at the rim instead of relying on physical ability.
The twilight of Wade’s career in Miami was still strong and he had memorable moments such as the ‘Purple Shirt Guy’ game and the tough series against Toronto in 2016. However, there was significant fraying of relationships between Wade and Miami over the matter of money. For the Big Three to take place, Wade took a discounted deal below the market value of a player of his ability. After the end of the Big Three, he expected that Miami would pay him for the sacrifices that he made to bring a chip to Miami and the years of loyalty that Dwyane displayed towards the Heat organisation. He preferably wanted a long-term deal that paid him close to the max salary so that he could comfortably retire with Miami and be a franchise lifer alongside his brother, Udonis Haslem. Miami were not willing to play ball, they only offered a 1/20 deal until 2016. In 2016, when Wade hit free agency Miami made another low-ball offer. They offered a deal that would have paid Dwyane Wade $10m per year for the next four years. Wade felt this offer was sub-standard and relationships became frosty. Eventually, Wade went home to become a Bull.
The Bulls had always been a dream for Wade, he idolised Michael Jordan and for him to don the same colours that Jordan did was a boyhood dream. It was a Chicago kid coming home to play for the Chicago Bulls, it was a dream come true. However, Wade’s age caught up with him and his stint in Chicago became forgettable. The smooth play became creaky and Wade became known for his crankiness towards the younger players in the locker-room. He was bought out after one season and joined up with his friend in Cleveland for one last run.
Wade re-invented himself as a second unit creator and sixth man in his brief tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers but it was clear that his heart was not in Cleveland. He famously used to check on Miami scores during the half-time of games that he was actively playing in. Dwyane missed Wade County and it was time for him to come home from the cold especially after the emotional hardship that he went through during the season. Wade lost one of his closest friends in the form of Henry Thomas, his agent of fifteen years and in Cleveland, he didn't have the home environment to deal with his sorrows. He didn't have the familiar Heat organisation who understood every single thought in Wade’s mind until he did. Koby Altmann made an extremely classy move to send Wade back to Wade County for a highly protected second round pick that will likely never convey.
A legend’s welcome awaited Wade in Miami and he assumed the last role of his career, mentor. Miami over the last few years have a lot of good players who are not necessarily great, Wade was the voice in the locker-room and on the court who pushed players like Josh Richardson and Tyler Johnson to grow and be better basketball players. The mentor was important in terms of securing a play-off berth in 2018 and a series against Philadelphia that became incredibly chippy very quickly. The Sixers series was also Wade’s last shining moment in the play-offs. In Game 2, Wade became ‘Father Prime’ as he carried the Heat to their sole victory in the post-season that year. He dazzled with turn-around jumpers and fadeaways as he took Philly apart as he operated under the play-offs bright lights one last time.
His last season in Miami has been hugely enjoyable from a fan perspective. We have seen Wade be Wade one last time and saw a master conduct One Last Dance. The kid from Robbins, Illnois became a legend in Miami and now would end his career at home for the franchise that he bled for, that he gave all of his heart for. Thank you D-Wade for all of the moments, you were a real one. I’ll finish this piece with a few lyrics.
Jay Z — “If Jeezy’s payin’ LeBron, I’m payin’ Dwyane Wade”
Kendrick Lamar — “I am Dwyane Wade of recording/You more like Kobe Bryant with no endorsements”
