In 2017, the dynamic duo of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade united once again, as Wade joined the Cleveland Cavaliers. They aimed to win another ring together, only to be defeated by the Golden State Warriors in the 2018 NBA Finals. These events took place eight years after Dwyane Wade welcomed Lebron James’ move to the Miami Heat.
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Following his move to Cleveland, Wade expressed regret about joining the fellow 2012 NBA champion at the Cavs when he realized LeBron’s intention to move to the Los Angeles Lakers. Following Bron’s departure, Wade returned to the Miami Heat, playing his last season in the 2018-19 season.
Wade won two rings in four years in Miami as James’ 2nd in command. The 2017 reunion was a rejuvenated hope for the duo to win a third ring together. Though they played a final together in 2018, Dwyane Wade’s run with the Cavs ended in disappointment.
Dwyane Wade expressed his regret after joining LeBron James at the Cleveland Cavaliers
Dwyane Wade is unequivocally considered a Miami Heat legend. After spending the majority of his career with the Heat, Wade had brief stints of play at the Chicago Bulls and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Back in 2014, his fellow 2012 NBA championship teammate LeBron James had returned to the Cavs, after spending four seasons in Miami. Later, the Heat legend ended up in his hometown team, with a young Bulls core to mentor. Just when it seemed that Wade had a blossoming Jimmy Butler under his tutelage, LeBron James called upon his Miami Heat pal for the chance to win a third ring together at the Cavs.
After a buyout agreement with the Bulls, Wade signed with the Cavs, reuniting with his former Heat teammate King James. However, at Cleveland, Wade was only offered a bench role by coach Tyronn Lue. He had become the leader of the second unit and had helped the Cavs through the Playoffs in the 2017-18 season. However, the 2018 NBA Finals was a major disappointment, as the Cavs were swept by the Golden State Warriors.
This defeat might have been one of the major reasons behind D-Wade’s regret for joining the Cavs. However, what disappointed the Flash further was knowing LeBron James’ intentions for a trade to Los Angeles. Wade saw it coming and wouldn’t have joined if the trade were to be materialized. As reported by the Athletic, D-Wade expressed his thoughts by saying,
“If I had known that was gonna happen (the trade), I wouldn’t have signed there. It’s gonna be an item on my resume that’s hard to understand, but it happened.”
When Wade joined the Cavs, he had figured LeBron wasn’t here to stay for long. His motive was to ultimately play in Los Angeles. However, The Flash honored his fellow mate joining him for another title run. Speaking about this, Wade further revealed,
LeBron, first of all, he’s a guy who always plays his cards close to the vest, but I knew his ultimate goal was to be in Los Angeles. He recruited me, and he talked to me about signing there (Cleveland), and I said, ‘listen, I know you might not be there long, you’re gonna be a free agent and there are some things that might happen, and we’ll have a conversation.’ I just thought I’d make it through the season first.”
Dwyane Wade knows better than most that his stint with the Cavs was rather underwhelming. Before joining Cleveland, Wade was averaging 18 points, five rebounds, and four assists per game at the Chicago Bulls. However, being reduced to a role player, Wade’s performance abilities dwindled at Cleveland. Apart from being reduced to a bench player, Wade had walked into a Cleveland team that had been rocked by Kyrie Irving’s departure, had an injured Isiah Thomas in his place, and had an overall dejected outlook on the season at the start.
After Kyrie Irving’s departure, the new Cavaliers roster, with LeBron James and Kevin Love being the only championship core, wasn’t meshing together. James now only had Dwyane Wade, Isiah Thomas, and Kevin Love to rely on for another championship run. However, after an embarrassing loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Dwyane Wade called out Kevin Love for failing to show up to the game.
Love’s absence particularly irked Wade and Thomas during a crucial game. However, D-Wade deeply regrets lashing out at K-Love. He was unaware of Love’s mental health struggles and was trying to goad a cornerstone piece of a title-winning team to help the team get into the championship mindset. To this day, Dwyane Wade regrets his behavior towards Kevin Love and seeks to apologize to him in person.
