“Do this for me, just let Dwyane Wade be the first here”: Gary Payton on how he sold Shaquille O’Neal on letting Flash be the main guy in the 2006 Miami Heat team

The Miami Heat won their first-ever championship in 2006. Besides the dynamic duo of Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal, the squad included veterans like Alonzo Mourning, Jason Williams, Gary Payton, etc.

The NBA legend Gary Payton is mostly known for his years in the Seattle SuperSonics. But he won his first and only championship in his 16th season when he was playing for the Miami Heat.

That was also the first-ever championship for the Heat franchise. A young Dwyane Wade was their best player. Despite having a loaded roster, the team had to face a lot of adversity throughout that season.

One of them was Shaquille O’Neal demanding the ball more. On a recent podcast with Draymond Green, Gary shared a story about how he convinced Shaq to take a backseat to D Wade. He said to Shaq, ” Do this for me. Just let him be the first here.”

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Dwyane Wade and crew handled the business

It was clear from the go that the Flash was the main guy in the team. Then Miami’s general manager Pat Riley got Shaq by trade from LA Lakers in 2004. Then Riley’s decision to add veterans to the team who were way off their prime got much criticism.

The team had a rough start that season. After 21 games, Van Gundy resigned from the head coach position and Riley stepped into that role. The Heat ended up with 52-30 that season. D Wade averaged 27.5 points and 6.2 assists, while Shaq averaged 20 points and 9.2 rebounds that season.

The Heat went to the Finals to battle it out with the Dallas Mavericks. They lost their first 2 games in the series. But the Heat took over Dallas in the next 4 games, all thanks to D wade’s outstanding performance. He scored 42, 36, 43, and 36 points consecutively in those games.

D wade was awarded the 2006 Finals MVP. Many veterans in the team like Gary finally won their first championship and Shaq got his 4th ring. Looking back, it was the right decision to let the Flash be the guy.

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