The Playoff Round: 2006 Finals (Heat Win 4-2)
The Player & The Line: Dwyane Wade, 34.7 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.8 APG, 2.7 SPG, 1.0 BPG on 47-27-77 shooting splits. Named Finals MVP
The Context: Was there any doubt what the top spot would be here? Dwyane Wade’s six-game Finals numbers are nearly unprecedented on their own, but when you take Wade’s last four games (after Miami fell behind 0-2), you have 39.3 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 2.5 SPG, and 1.0 BPG on 51-33-80 shooting splits. Just about the only possible thing to knock Wade for here was, though no fault of his own, how easy Dallas made it for him at times. Mavericks coach Avery Johnson’s insistence on double-teaming Shaquille O’Neal all series (hence Shaq’s scoring numbers plummeting from the Conference Finals to the Finals) meant Wade could take and win any one-on-one matchups he faced (which also explains his relatively low assist averages). A pantheon Heat performance that may never be dethroned.
Honorable mentions: Tim Hardaway 1997 ECSF, Alonzo Mourning 2000 ECSF, Dwyane Wade 2006 ECF, Dwyane Wade 2009 ECQF, Dwyane Wade 2011 Finals, LeBron James 2012 ECSF, LeBron James 2013 Finals, LeBron James 2014 ECSF, Dwyane Wade 2016 ECSF, Bam Adebayo 2020 ECF