Dwayne Wade

Dwayne Wade is an American professional basketball player and three-time NBA champion. He is currently signed with Miami Heat and is the all-time leader in games, points, assists, steals, shots taken, and shots made in the team.

Wade had a hard life growing up and turned to basketball to stay on the right course. He looked up to Michael Jordan and patterned his playing style after him. At Harold L. Richards High School, he was a successful wide receiver on the football team but he struggled in the high school varsity. After growing a couple of inches more, he was soon setting records in his school.

He was recruited by Marquette University and led his team into winning its first and only Conference USA Championship. His performance in college basketball became highly publicized and soon he was eligible for the 2003 NBA Draft.

He was picked by Miami Heat in 2003 and the team gradually improved their rankings and qualified for the NBA playoffs. In the 2005 playoffs, he averaged 26.3 points, 8.8 assists, and 6 rebounds. Wade became one of the most famous players in NBA in the 2005-2006 Season and successfully helped Heat into the Eastern Conference Finals despite his hip injuries.

They faced the Dallas Mavericks in his first NBA Finals where Wade’s career-high performances earned him the Finals MVP Award. He is the 5th youngest player to get the MVP award in the history of the NBA and his performance were hailed by analysts as one of the greatest seen on a Finals.

Wade was the first guard to earn all-NBA honors and finished the 2006-2007 Season as the leader in Player Efficiency Rating in the whole NBA even if he was riddled with injuries. Wade enjoyed further success as part of the “Big Three Era”, along with Chris Bosh and LeBron James. Heat went through four successful seasons with their exceptional lineup.

In 2016, he transferred to the Chicago Bulls, his hometown team, but his season with the team did not go well due to internal squabbling and injuries. He then transferred to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a short period. He returned to Miami Heat in 2018.

Career Accomplishments:
• Gold medal, 2008 Beijing Olympics
• Bronze medal, 2004 Athens Olympics
• Bronze medal, 2006 Japan World Championship
• 3-time NBA champion (2006, 2012, 2013)
• NBA Finals MVP (2006)
• 12-time NBA All-Star (2005–2016)
• NBA All-Star Game MVP (2010)
• 2-time All-NBA First Team (2009, 2010)
• 3-time All-NBA Second Team (2005, 2006, 2011)
• 3-time All-NBA Third Team (2007, 2012, 2013)
• 3-time NBA All-Defensive Second Team (2005, 2009, 2010)
• NBA All-Rookie First Team (2004)
• NBA scoring champion (2009)
• Consensus first-team All-American (2003)
• Third-team All-American – SN (2002)
• Conference USA Player of the Year (2003)
• Number 3 retired by Marquette