Miami Heat Legend Dwyane Wade Formed Into The Best Second Option For LeBron James
Despite some arguments, Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade is one of the greatest shooting guards of all-time.
He took a backseat when LeBron James joined the Heat in 2010 but it didn’t stop him from expanding his game and inserting new skills. In a recent episode of Hoops Tonight, Jason Timpf talks about how Wade improved to be the best complementary player for James.
“Even though he never really had his top tier burst, he added all of these little things to his skill set to become a dependable No. 2 star alongside LeBron James,” Timpf said. “He added a post game. Wade had a really good hook shot with his right hand in the lane. A little push shot, kind of like a half hook floater thing. He literally became the very best cutter in the league off the ball. He scored 100 field goals in the 2013 season on cuts to the basket. That led the league for guards by a mile. He became an outstanding defensive player. He was one of the best guard shot blockers in the league. He took primary point-of-attack assignments. He was constantly grabbing contested rebounds. And then he became one of the very best passers in the league. He did literally everything in his power to just create a version of himself that could coexist alongside LeBron James with his diminished athleticism, which to me was such a great indicator of the winner that he was.”
During James’ first year in Miami, Wade was still the leader as he averaged 25 points. But he took a step back and let James take over for the following three years. Instead of being the go-to scorer he once was, he played the secondary role and assisted James whenever needed. It was also around this time when he showed his amazing defensive skill set, becoming one of the best guard shot blockers of all-time.
Obviously this worked, considering the Heat made four playoff appearances from 2011-2014 and won back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013.
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Cory Nelson is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson. You can also check out his personal blog HERE.
