“When I look back on it,” Dwayne Wade said in 2019 as he looked back on his career. “I’ve done everything I could.” This Saturday, the Heat legend will recieve the honor of gracing the elite list of NBA Hall of Famers after playing 16 impactful seasons in the league.
The 41-year-old did not only win three NBA titles, he made thirteen All-Star selections, was named All-NBA in eight occasions, three-time All-Defensive, earned a gold medal with Team USA at the 2008 Olympics and became Miami’s all-time leader in points, assists, steals and matches played.
“I’m pretty biased about it, but for his tenure here he’s probably the most respected, admired professional that we’ve ever seen in this state,” said Heat president Pat Riley. “LeBron was here for four years, but Dwyane was here for a lifetime. I don’t think you’ll ever see another player like Dwyane in any sport that’s going to surpass him.”
A great number of teammates from his days in Miami, as well as other stars from the NBA family, gathered together in a video to celebrate Wade’s newest honor:
Back in 2003, he was selected by the South Beach franchise as the draft’s fifth overall pick, but was overshadowed by his future teammate LeBron James, who spent his first seven seasons in Cleveland before heading to Florida.
Wade recalls the day Shaquille O’Neal came to Miami as one of his career’s biggest inspirational moments that reminded everyone at the club that they were meant for great things together.
“When Shaq came, it really inserted that level of confidence in me that I could be one of the greats,” he reminisced. “I mean, I needed somebody that was a great to be able to show me what it’s like to be great. When Shaq says, you’re going to be one of the greats, I don’t need no more juice than that.”
Wade reached his strongest version in the 2008/09 campaign, which ended up being one of the best-season performances ever displayed by a basketball athlete. The Heat guard led the league in scoring with a 30.2 point average, as well as career highs in assists (7.5), steals (2.2) and blocks (1.3).
Modern-day stars like Jimmy Butler still use Wade as their main inspiration when representing the Heat jersey
Jimmy Butler, who recently led Miami to the last stages of the playoffs against the Denver Nuggets, said he always feels inspired by Wade’s legacy and wishes to bring titles to South Beach just as he did three times before.
“He’s the player I always respected, always wanted to copy,” he said during the 2023 Finals. “His presence is everywhere in Miami even though he’s retired. He played the right way, the way I want to play. Now, I just want to win championships like him.”
Dwayne Wade has quite the Hall of Fame résumé!
Flash will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame this Saturday at 8 PM ET. #NBA #HeatCulture pic.twitter.com/HwNJcpm8Xe— OutOfSightSports🚀™️ (@OOSSports) August 8, 2023
Not too long ago, the future Hall of Famer sat down with Shannon Sharpe and recalled how versatile he was during his time as an athlete. This is why he also considers himself as one of the greats.
“I’ve played so many roles my entire basketball career,” he claimed. “And I think that’s why I look at myself as one of the greatest players, because I didn’t do it one way. I showed you how to be great in so many different ways and so many different times; my game changed and evolved so much.”
