On December 11, 2018, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade left the NBA with countless regrets. This was the last time the two had the chance to stand together on the court. At the end of this season, Dwyane Wade will retire and this will be the last match between the Miami Heat and LA Lakers.
Entering the NBA together in the 2003 Draft, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James have spent their NBA years together as teammates and opponents on the court. Not only as players, the two have also been very close friends since their early days in the NBA.
After all, nothing great lasts forever. 15 years have passed, and this match is also considered an affirmation for a new generation in the NBA, ending a glorious era. Let’s take a look back at the 5 most memorable moments that Dwyane Wade and LeBron James brought to the NBA:
1. Welcome Day
On September 7, 2010, the Miami Heat first introduced their new NBA big-3 consisting of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. This event took place exactly one day after the Miami Heat completed the deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors.
During the event, the players stood in front of the entire audience to speak about their aspirations when they came to the team. Here, LeBron James had a memorable quote when predicting the number of championships of Miami Heat in the future: “Not 2, not 3, not 4, not 5, not 6, not 7”.
This event also marked the first moment that LeBron James and Dwyane Wade became teammates.
2. The legendary photo
If there’s one memorable photo from LeBron James and Dwyane Wade’s journey, it’s definitely the dunk from December 7, 2010.
In a quick game against the Milwaukee Bucks, Dwyane Wade made a back-pass for LeBron James to dunk. Dwyane Wade even celebrated before the ball went into the basket.
That moment was captured and became a legendary photo whenever fans mentioned this duo.
3. Game 6 vs Indiana Pacers
In the 2012 playoffs, Miami Heat had to face a very strong team, the Indiana Pacers. Paul George and Roy Hibbert in their peak form almost eliminated Miami Heat from the playoffs.
Memphis girl bursts into tears over LeBron James’s thoughtful gesture
After falling behind 2-1 and facing the absence of center Chris Bosh, the LeBron James-Dwyane Wade duo exploded and carried the Miami Heat back from the dead.
In Game 6, both scored 69 points to help Miami Heat defeat Indiana Pacers, continuing to advance to the next round. Dwyane Wade scored 41 points and LeBron James had 28 points in that important match.
4. First championship
On June 21, 2012, Miami Heat defeated Oklahoma City Thunder with names like Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden after 5 games to win the championship.
Don’t retire yet, Dwyane Wade! You’re still scoring like this.
After being defeated by the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 Finals, the duo of Dwyane Wade and LeBron James became more and more compatible and explosive. And what had to happen happened.
LeBron James won his first championship with his close friend Dwyane Wade and star center Chris Bosh. This was also the first title in the Miami Heat era with LeBron James.
5. Final 2013
2013 was a sweet season for the Miami Heat. They defeated the San Antonio Spurs at the height of their coach Gregg Popovich’s reign in the finals and won the championship. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade became the 6th duo in NBA history to win 2 consecutive championships.
However, like all great things, nothing lasts forever. This was also the last championship for the Miami Heat in the LeBron James era before being defeated by the San Antonio Spurs in the finals the following year.
