In the 2006 NBA Finals, the Miami Heat faced off against the Dallas Mavericks. Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal looked like a powerful duo together, one that Dirk Nowitzki’s side couldn’t figure out. As a consequence of that, Wade was fouled quite a bit during the series. In fact, the then-young star shot a total of 97 free throws across the six-game series. This has led countless fans to wonder if there was something going on with refs perhaps wanting to sway the series in one way. However, when asked to comment, Richard Jefferson was in staunch support of Dwyane. Speaking on the episode of ‘Road Trippin‘ released on September 21st of this year, the NBA champion vehemently explained why.
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Wade and the Heat were something akin to unstoppable during the 2006 Finals. Shaq was still a force to be reckoned with, so he needed to be double-teamed constantly. Taking advantage of that, ‘The Flash’ would run around, raising havoc for their opponents. This was the biggest reason behind their comeback as well. Despite losing the first two games of the series to the Mavericks, the Heat came raging back, winning the next four games in a hurry. Before anyone knew it, the side were crowned champions.
Richard Jefferson talks about Dwyane Wade’s free throws alongside Channing Frye
Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye were asked to talk about many things, deeming if they were “Truth or trash”. Of the many topics discussed, the number of free throws Wade got was a major talking point. Justifying the 97 foul shots that were awarded to the Heat legend, Richard Jefferson said the following.
“He (Dwyane Wade) was the guy that was like, at the end of the game, when they’re fouling you get another six free-throws… It was Shaq. Shaq might not have been a double team, still, but you still needed two bodies on Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal). And that’s when D-Wade was the Flash. So, they didn’t have anyone to guard him. That’s why he won Finals MVP. Because they couldn’t guard him, it wasn’t just free throws.”
Jefferson also discussed how incredible it was Wade made as many free throws as he did during the series. With the man having had a free throw percentage of 77% in the Finals, despite attempting 16.2 per game, it’s hard to disagree.
When his turn came, Channing Frye only agreed with Richard Jefferson himself, reiterating every point made by his former Cavaliers teammate. Given how incredible Wade’s performance was in that series, admittedly it’s hard to believe many would be in disagreement either.
Dwyane Wade’s former coach picked his 2006 NBA Finals performance over all of Michael Jordan’s
In 2006, Stan Van Gundy was the head coach of the Miami Heat. While he did have some bumps along the road with Shaq, he was very proud of his team. So, when he had the honor of having coached Wade during his incredible Finals performance, there were always going to be a few outlandish statements being made. And sure enough, Van Gundy said the following after the series.
“He just went off the charts. Dwyane literally for six weeks played the game at a level that no one’s ever played at. I don’t know that Jordan ever played a better Finals.”
It is a bit hard to blame a coach who just won an NBA championship. Still, we’re a bit hesitant to believe a young Dwyane Wade’s Finals performance was better than all of Michael Jordan’s.
