The one major LeBron-Wade regret: We never saw them face off in a high-stakes series
Spacing the Floor | Part I: Kemba Walker carrying Hornets with free agency looming
LeBron James wasn’t letting Dwyane Wade get away on the last possession in the likely last matchup of their linked careers, staying with him step-for-sidestep as if he were Wade’s shadow.
If that shadow were six inches taller and 40 pounds heavier.
James’ anticipation of Wade’s signature move prevented the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat from going to overtime Monday and preserved the Lakers’ win, closing the book on a storied partnership that has defined the NBA and shaped it for generations to come.
The two embraced even before the buzzer sounded and it got one to thinking: How great would it have been to see these two iconic figures going at it with the stakes at their absolute highest?
Those early man-to-man confrontations were the fabric of the league after they entered the NBA in 2003, and, surprisingly, we never got a chance to see them face off at their apex with something on the line.
But they planned on creating history, not duplicating it.
Selfishly, we could’ve seen more. So much more.
James and Wade were arguably the two players who defined the Eastern Conference once they got a hang of the league. They battled the same opponents for trips to the NBA Finals in the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons, each putting together memorable, indelible playoff performances against both.
They came close to squaring off, though. James’ Cleveland Cavaliers took a 3-2 lead against the Pistons in the second round in 2006 before the defending conference champions stormed back, winning in seven. Wade and the Heat were waiting in the conference finals as Wade was weeks away from etching himself in history with one of the greatest Finals performances of all time.
And in 2016, the Heat were in a seven-game struggle with the Toronto Raptors with James’ Cavs awaiting in the conference finals. Unfortunately, the Heat ran out of gas in the fourth quarter of Game 7 in Toronto, thwarting the dream once and for all.
In between that time, though, James’ and Wade’s four-year Miami partnership was as beneficial for the NBA as it was for each superstar. James needed the structure Miami provided after his initial time in Cleveland fizzled and needed the support from Wade’s championship experience as the pressure mounted in their early years together. And Wade was no longer able to carry a championship team the way he had in 2006, so he was the perfect sidekick as James ascended from great to legendary.
The four trips to the Finals and two rings are what the history books will show, but it’s their friendship and partnership that will endure.
The basketball world has obsessed over the missed opportunity of seeing James and Kobe Bryant play against each other in the Finals. But through all that, we also forgot Wade took no true backseat to either when he was healthy and on opposite sides.
He sacrificed two years of his prime as Heat president Pat Riley stripped things down to the bare minimum to give himself a shot to acquire James and Chris Bosh in free agency. Wade’s absolute best basketball came when it was arguably at its most meaningless from a team perspective, and he often reflected how his scoring title in 2009 didn’t come with a trophy in June but a first-round exit in April.
Those experiences made him more amenable to teaming with James and willingly accept a secondary role even after James struggled mightily in the 2011 NBA Finals — a series in which had James even played a step above comatose would’ve given Wade a second Finals MVP.
But Wade took a backseat to James and followed through to let his talented teammate take the reins, which started the Heat’s reign atop the NBA.
From the outside looking it, it appeared their friendship was tested when Wade opted out of his contract in 2014 in an effort to keep James onboard, giving up tens of millions of dollars only to have James blindside the NBA world by returning to Cleveland.
But Wade kept business in one box while his brotherhood stayed intact, perhaps proving had he and James been on opposite sides going first to four, their friendship wouldn’t have gone to ashes in the relentless pursuit of winning.
Even still, it would’ve been fun to see.
Buzzer-beaters
1. Maybe Paul George knew what he was doing when he said he believed in Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s ability to win a championship. They are monsters on defense and that carries into playoff basketball.
2. This voter had Nate McMillan on his Coach of the Year ballot last season when not many did. He’s making himself hard to ignore as the Pacers are staying afloat in the East with Victor Oladipo in designer threads the last couple of weeks.
3. Doncic fever? (Cough, cough.) I’ve caught it!
4. One day, we will all figure out the answers in the curious case of Markelle Fultz. Until then, it remains a mystery.
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