Gilbert Arenas’ had one of the best underdog careers of the early 2000s.
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Agent Zero was a second-round pick who burst into stardom for the Washington Wizards. Arenas was an excellent scorer from all three levels and proved to be a stellar player in a star-studded era of the NBA.
With Gil, the Wizards were in regular playoff contention. It marked one of the periods of continued success in the Wizards’ recent history.
In a stacked Eastern Conference, the Wizards however did not go the distance. One of their roadblocks was the Miami Heat.
The Miami Heat had drafted superstar Dwyane Wade and were on the way up. The big swing for Shaquille O’Neal, after the disgruntled star wanted out of the Lakers, took them to instant contention.
Even with Shaq however, Miami was well en route to becoming Wade County. The Flash had taken the league by storm and was unstoppable on his day.
On Forgotten Seasons, Gilbert Arenas speaks about his young rival with great respect.
What did Arenas have to talk about a young DWade?
DWade and Arenas faced off in the Playoffs in 2005. In the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, DWade’s Heat swept Arenas and his Wizards on the back of Wade’s 31-8-7 statline across the series.
Arenas talks about how Wade was killing them. Wade’s intensity, according to Arenas, made it seem like he took every game personally and converted it to his drive to win.
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Arenas mentions how the Heat were overwhelming favorites in the series and showed no mercy. The Flash and Co. did not care much for Gil’s wizardry and scoring and thumped the Wizards promptly.
The Heat became an attractive proposition and Wade set the tone for the “Heat Culture”. The ascendance of Wade to stardom was incredible to watch and paved the way for a hall of fame career.
While the Big-Three version of Heat is often referred to, the Wade-Shaq era isn’t spoken much about. One of the most understated champions, the mid 2000s Heat were a formidable team and deserve more credit.
