Dwyane Wade is a Miami Heat Legend, who had plenty of legendary moments throughout his career. Here is a look at 15 of the greatest moments.
The Miami Heat are known to able to find a diamond in the rough, just look no further than Derrick Jones Jr. or Kendrick Nunn on the current roster of the team. Although being picked as high as he was, some wouldn’t call Dwyane Wade a hidden gem, but when you consider what he accomplished over his career, no one could have expected that or saw it coming.
No one knew that this undersold prospect from Marquette would turn out to be the player he became. Who would have thought that a “kid from Robbins, Illinois(there’s a hint) would turn into one of the greatest basketball players of all time, the third greatest shooting guard of all time, and the greatest Miami Heat player in franchise history? No one thought it, that’s who.
Who could have known that a guy that was seemingly overlooked at every level would shake the league up like he did? Did anyone believe that he could come in and within just a few short years, along with one of the greatest big men to ever play the game in Shaq, win the first NBA title in Miami Heat franchise history?
The Man, the myth, the legend
Who knew that he would go on to not only be a pillar for the franchise, but for the city and communities of Miami, and what is now referred to as Wade County(Dade County)? Probably the same people that knew he would amass career averages of 22 points per game, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.4 assists.
That list includes…no one, not one single solitary soul. D-Wade didn’t mind though, he just came to town and did work anyway.
With that in mind though, here are 15 of the greatest D-Wade moments of all time, in no specific order. Three of the moments that made the cut can be seen here in the clip below.
1. Buzzer-beater against Chicago Bulls
The Date was March 9, 2009. Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat were playing their 63rd game of the season against the Chicago Bulls in South Beach.
The game was an instant classic, having already gone to double overtime before Flash would ever leave his lifelong stamp on it. John Salmons had the ball with around 10 seconds left in the game.
He proceeded to make his moves, hopeful of penetrating the lane. With around five seconds left on the game clock, he started to go but at around 3.5 seconds, Flash pulled a Flash. He ripped the ball from Salmons and headed the other way with a head of steam.
With the clock about to expire, Wade rose up at the three-point line off of one leg, let the shot go, and swish! The game was over on a Miami Heat buzzer-beating shot from the one and only Dwyane Wade. This is where the first iconic scorer’s table jump came from.
2. D-Wade to LeBron football pass alley-oops
During the Miami Heat’s Big 3 era there were many marvelous connections made by Dwyane Wade and his best bud, LeBron James. While there were again many, there were two that stick out more than any other.
On February 6, 2013, there was the one pass directly off of a jump ball sequence in the third quarter, as seen above. There was also another phenomenal pass against the Denver Nuggets from a game that took place on January 13, 2012. It can be seen below, but these were a duo that could be two but were counted as one of the greatest Flash moments of all time.
3. Dunk on Varejao
This is one of the most classic Dwyane Wade moments of all time. If you just go to your friendly neighborhood Youtube site and start typing “Dwyane Wade dunk”, “on Varejao” will quickly come into your search box suggestion.
Although Dwyane Wade would finish with 36 points, four rebounds, five assists, and two blocks, Lebron’s Cavaliers would take the game, winning the game 111-104. LeBron finished with 34 points, four rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and a block. Regardless of who got the win that night, Flash had the play of the game.
It was iconic, it was powerful, it was Flash. No further details needed, but look it up! That is why this is one of the greatest Flash moments of all time.
4. Table Jump 2
After D-Wade’s final home game in American Airlines Arena, it was time for him to salute his home fans for the final time.
As he put it, he was going to do so “the only way” he knew how. Here’s him doing it the way he knew how. The slip-up just added to the comedic flare.
As he had done once before, it was off to the scorer’s table. He hopped up, hopped down, fell while hopping up again, but it was still iconic.
Although it was not as dramatic as the one that came after hitting the buzzer-beater against the Bulls years prior, it was still epic. That is why this is one of the greatest moments of all time for 3.
5. Versus Philly in 2018 Playoffs
Although the Miami Heat eventually dropped the series to the Philadelphia 76ers 4-1, Dwyane Wade had a great series for the Heat. He only averaged 16.6 points per game for the series, but he was one of the most impressive players throughout.
All of his games were good from an overall perspective, but he had two that were more impressive than any others. In game two of the series, he went for 28 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
In game four, he went for 25 points, three rebounds, an assist, and three steals. Again, while the Heat would lose in a Gentleman’s Sweep to the Philadelphia 76ers, Wade was great at times, and that is why this makes the top moments of his career.
6. Golden State buzzer-beater
During last season, Wade’s last, there was a game against the Golden State Warriors on February 27, 2019. The game came down the wire, with the Miami Heat having a shot to win it in the closing moments.
As it should have been, Dwyane Wade was involved in the action. After a brief moment of figuring things out, the right guy ended up with the balls in his hands again.
After passing the ball and making a move to an open space on the floor, setting himself up for what he thought would be the look at a shot, he was met by a defender. He pump-faked Kevin Durant out of the frame, but another Warriors player got a hand on the shot.
The deflection landed in the hands of Wade, to which he lofted a shot towards the rim that went in. Game over! That is why this is one of the greatest Flash moments ever.
7. Dual Block’s on LeBron as apart of four block game in first matchup of Wade’s return to Miami
It was just over a month and a half since Dwyane Wade had been traded back to the Miami Heat from the Cleveland Cavaliers. He had fallen out of the rotation in Cleveland but as quickly realized, there was a role for him still in Miami and an important one.
Not only would this end up being a blowout win for the Miami Heat, but it turned out to be a classic Flash game. Known for his shot-blocking prowess, the dual blocks on LeBron were en route to four total blocks that game, such a Dwyane Wade way to do it. That’s why this is one of his greatest moments.
8. Zaire wade “from Robbins, Illinois” remake
While this isn’t about one thing in particular that he did on the court, it is about everything he ever did. When Dwyane Wade was with Converse on an endorsement deal, one of the more famous commercials from the pairing was his “from Robbins, Illinois” black and white ad. Well, in tribute to his father, Zaire Wade recreated the iconic commercial.
This was apart of Wade’s One Last Dance tour, taking place at one of his final Miami Heat home games. As mentioned, it wasn’t specifically about one or another of his on-court exploits, but about all of his on and off-court ventures and accomplishments.
One of his greatest accomplishments in his child, recreating another one of his greatest accomplishments in being good and respected enough to earn that endorsement, ad, and enough respect for it to become iconic, talking about all of his other accomplishments. That is why this is one of the 15 greatest D-Wade moments.
9. Circus shot 2006 ECF against Pistons
Dwyane Wade has made a career out of hitting tough shots. Look no further than earlier on in this list with the buzzer-beater against Golden State to win the game or the shot from his first-ever playoffs against the Hornets.
This one falls into that category. What makes it so special though is that it was against a very tough defensive team and it was en route to what would be his first title and the first title in Miami Heat franchise history. Those factors alone, make this one of the greatest moments in Dwyane Wade’s career.
10. Alley-oop to Shaq
While the lob pass to Shaq made the headline, that isn’t the whole story here. A huge part of this story is the move that Flash made while progressing the ball up the court. He crossed over behind Sasha Pavlović’s back, keeping the play, before throwing the pass to the big man.
They say that big-time players make big-time plays. Wade was definitely a big-time player and this was a big-time play.
11. Purple shirt man
This was another classic D-Wade moment. “Purple shirt man” is a rabid Charlotte Hornets fan who saw fit to heckle Wade. Here is what Bleacher Report’s Laura Depta had to say about the moment.
"The star of Game 6 of the Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets’ first-round playoff series was obviously Dwyane Wade, who notched eight points in the final three minutes and six seconds of Miami’s 97-90 win. Purple Shirt Guy was a close second, though. The Hornets superfan and his colorful attire became an Internet sensation after footage of him heckling Wade went viral. And now, thanks to Theoden Janes of the Charlotte Observer, the world knows just what he said…sort of. According to Janes, the fan told Wade he needed to retire. As it turns out, Purple Shirt Guy’s real name is Michael Deason. He’s 43 years old and owns the courtside seat he stood up from to confront Wade."
The fan laughed a lot, but Dwyane Wade had the last laugh. The Miami Heat went on to win that series, 4-3.
12. Drop off pass to LeBron(iconic photo)
By now everyone in existence that has ever seen anything sports-related has probably seen the photo. The one where LeBron is finishing a dunk with D-Wade looking on opened armed.
A lot of people tend to think that was an alley-oop pass, but in fact, it was not. It was simply a drop-off pass from Flash to LBJ that was snapped at the exact right moment. Either way, it is still one of the greatest moments in Flash’s career, it’s still breaking the internet.
13. Game-winning floater over Baron Davis
The year was 2004, the second half of the 2003-04 NBA season, where Dwyane Wade was still just a rookie. You would have ever been able to tell based on his performance in the playoffs that year.
He hit a big three in the closing moments of game five to give the Miami Heat a three-point lead over the Hornets at the time, one that would eventually see them win the game, but that wasn’t the first time he had come up clutch in that series. In game one, it was D-Wade over Baron Davis for what would be the game-winning shot.
He was a rookie, hitting it over a seasoned vet and star player, and in the biggest moments that are the playoffs. That is why this is one of the greatest moments of Dwyane Wade’s career.
14. 2008 Olympics
He had already arrived, somewhat, winning a title already in his then young career. This Olympics run would serve to further his coming out party though. He led that team in scoring with 16 points per game, a team that included Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, LeBron James, and Chris Paul among other top NBA players.
He was also top five in rebounding, while tied for the lead in steals. This is also rumored to be where the conception of the Big 3 took place which means extra bonus points. The aforementioned reasons are why this is one of the greatest Flash moments of all time.
15. Set career game-high for 3’s
Dwyane Wade has been a lot of things, but a three-point shooter wasn’t one of them, at least until his final NBA season. That didn’t stop him from trying though.
In such Dwyane Wade fashion, he usually saved his best performances for the biggest moments. In a playoff matchup against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the 2009 NBA playoffs, Dwyane Wade put on his best Steph Curry impersonation.
He scored 33 points while hitting six three balls, en route to 60 percent shooting from deep that game. In case your math is a bit rusty, that’s 6/10 from deep. Because of what it was, from who, and when he did it, this is why this is one of the greatest D-Wade moments.
Bonus Moment!
Every mythical or epic figure and hero throughout history has generally met a similar epic fate. Whether that be being slain in an epic battle, fight, or adventure or whether it comes at a pivotal time such as Mufasa of the Lion King, it is typically just as epic of an occurrence as the subject themselves.
Dwyane Wade was no different. He came into the league with a bang. He also left that way.
While some players struggle to even look like a semblance of themselves in their final season, Flash still had a ton to give. Not only was he Miami’s best player for a good part of the season, if not all, but he was one of they guys they relied on in closing time or the most crucial points the game.
It showed in each and every game as they scrambled to get the ball to Wade when it mattered the most. In his final game ever though, they didn’t scramble to get it to him, he facilitated to everyone else.
As a matter of fact, he did just about a little of everything that game. Here goes nothing.
Triple-double in last ever NBA game
This moment goes without saying. It really needs no description, caption, or write-up. It tells itself, as every great story should.
In his final NBA game ever, Dwyane Wade messed around and got a triple-double. It wasn’t of the just barely variety either, as he had 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 dimes. Although the Miami Heat dropped the game, we were all winners for being able to witness that.
These were the 15 greatest moments of D-Wade’s career. With the Miami Heat looking as good as they have to start the season, there is still room to create more.
Would you? Please, Flash? Either way, we will be here continuing to ask, re-watching all of the glorious moments he has given us thus far.