Dwyane Wade became one of the league's best high-stakes performers, especially after leading the Miami Heat to the playoffs as a rookie. With three NBA championships, a Finals MVP, 13 All-Star appearances, and eight All-NBA selections, Wade is considered the greatest shooting guard ever, not named Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant.
Despite his instant success in the NBA, the Heat icon is remembered more for what he could've been than for what he was. As a result, Wade is often forgotten in all-time basketball discussions, even though that's where he aimed to be from day one.
"I did so many different things, and I played so many different roles," Wade expressed during an episode of "7pm in Brooklyn." "[...] I'm not the greatest shooter of all time; I'm not the greatest this, but I was great at so many different things. Then, I learned how to be great at being a role player. … I did so many things in the game of basketball. When I [was healthy], before injuries, I'm like, 'MJ, I'm coming for you.' I mean, that's my mentality."
In the all-time debate
After spending much of his rookie season in the shadows of his more celebrated draft classmates LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony , Wade burst into the spotlight during the playoffs. No. 3 became one of just four rookies—joining the likes of Jordan, Stephon Marbury, and Billy Ray Bates—to lead his team in scoring and assists during the postseason.
In his very first playoff game, with just 1.3 seconds left on the clock, Dwyane nailed a running jumper to give the Heat an 81-79 victory over the New Orleans Hornets. That clutch shot set the tone for the series, which Miami eventually won in a nail-biting 4-3 finish.
Next up were the Indiana Pacers, the top-seeded squad with the best record in the NBA. Everyone expected the Heat to struggle—they did for most of the series—but thanks to Wade and his tenacity, the series dragged on to six games.
In Game 3, with the Pacers, led by Ron Artest, tying the game at 72 midway through the fourth quarter, it looked like Indiana might take a commanding 3-0 lead in the series. But Wade dropped 14 of his 25 points in that final frame, including a jaw-dropping dunk over Pacers big man Jermaine O'Neal.
For a guy who many doubted when he was initially drafted, Wade showed an uncanny ability to break down one of the NBA's top defenses and create shots not just for himself but for his teammates.
"I thought I was coming for MJ," the legendary guard continued. "I'm like, 'Yeah, I'm going to be the greatest,' because I figured out very early in the league, right in my second year… In fact, at the end of my rookie year in the playoffs versus the Pacers, Ron Artest… he couldn't guard me, and I was like, 'He's the best defender in the league,' but I was faster than him."
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Injury-filled ending
Right after leading Miami to its first-ever NBA championship in 2006, Wade was riding high. But just as he was entering his prime, the shooting guard hit a major bump in the road when he dislocated his left shoulder.
This was a brutal blow; it was both a mental and physical setback. The injury forced him to miss 31 games during the 2006–07 season.
Dwyane tried to fight through the pain, and the Heat struggled without their star. Suddenly, the team that had just hoisted the Larry O'Brien Trophy found itself limping into the playoffs, only to be swept in the first round by the Chicago Bulls. Wade faced persistent knee problems during the 2009 season, the year after he was in the MVP discussion.
Besides his first year with James as his teammate, the Marquette product was mostly a shell of his former self, missing games and often needing injections in his knees before playing. Although the Heat won going away against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2012 NBA Finals, the team eked out next year's title against San Antonio.
James' final season in Miami was the year Wade's diminishing returns were brought to the forefront. LeBron ended up departing as a result, and Wade later described playing his last few years in the league in pain that his body just couldn't handle anymore.
Related: Wade says the most memorable moment of the NBA 75 photoshoot was when MJ walked in: "When he walked through, everything changed"
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