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5 reasons Dwyane Wade is the greatest Miami Heat player of all-time

By Kenneth Wilson

MIAMI, FL - APRIL 09: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat runs on top of the scorers table to thank the fans after the final regular season home game of his career against the Philadelphia 76ers at American Airlines Arena on April 09, 2019 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - APRIL 09: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat runs on top of the scorers table to thank the fans after the final regular season home game of his career against the Philadelphia 76ers at American Airlines Arena on April 09, 2019 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /
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Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
Miami Heat coach Pat Riley, left, talks with player Dwyane Wade (3) in the fourth quarter against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals at the American Airlines Arena, Sunday, June 18, 2006, in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Paul Moseley/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT via Getty Images) /

He checks all the boxes

When thinking about the greatest players in any team’s history, you have to check all the boxes so to speak. Dwyane Wade does just that for his Miami Heat.

When looking at the length of his tenure with the Miami Heat, he spent most of all of his 16 years in the league with the Heat. Outside of the one-and-a-half seasons away from his adopted hometown Heat, American Airlines Arena on Biscayne was always his home. Also, when thinking about great players, there has to be something that set them apart, a certain “it” factor if you will.

Along with his infectiously huge signature smile, D-Wade’s play on the court was electrifying. His style was one of reckless abandon, in which he would seemingly throw his body against a metal wall if that’s what it took to make a play for his team. He wound up on the floor more than just about any player in the NBA, appropriate for a man who “fell seven times and got up eight”, but this was just the only way in which he knew how to play.

His floor game was pure excitement every time he stepped on the court, even up until his final season, where he was still making the birdies fly by with his signature pump fake. Another crucial box he checked that coincides with the length of his tenure, is the fact that he stayed through the down times. Even through the lowly 2007-2008 season where the Miami Heat went 15-67, one of only three years including this one where he didn’t make the playoffs, he stuck it through and never asked to go.

Even when comparing him to other Miami Heat greats, he’s the one that comes out on top. Looking at a few that most notably come to mind: he beats out LeBron as he was truly Cleveland’s and has since become LA’s, when thinking about Shaq, he made his bones in LA as well before coming over to join the Heat family, Alonzo Mourning was great and although he played almost 11 of his 15 seasons in Miami, he didn’t have quite the impact D-Wade did.

You could mention Tim Hardaway, Eddie Jones, Chris Bosh, Glen Rice, and most appropriately Udonis Haslem(big shout out to UD…top 3-4), but none of them quite stack up to what Dwyane Wade means to this organization.

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