Dwyane Wade and LeBron James arrived in the NBA simultaneously as two lottery picks in the famous 2003 NBA draft that featured big names like Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Kyle Korver.
18 years after that star-studded draft, only James and Anthony remain active in the league. They are part of the Los Angeles Lakers, trying to get LeBron’s 5th championship and the first in Melo’s career.
Meanwhile, Wade has been retired for two years now, after finishing an honored career where he won three championships in five trips to the Finals. On the other end, his best friend LeBron is still thriving at age 36, during his 19th NBA season. Dwyane knows how remarkable that is from his former teammate.
Flash recently sat down with Shams Charania on Stadium, talking about Bron and his expectations for this season. The retired shooting guard revealed he told LeBron to keep going, predicting he would play for so long that people would forget he and Wade were once teammates (4:12).
“Keep going, bro. You’re going to play so long that people are going to forget we even played together.” – Dwyane Wade on former co-star LeBron James in 19th season. Wade sits down with @Stadium: LeBron, communication being key with Utah-Donovan Mitchell, new Memoir, more. pic.twitter.com/6V6NMLY9lH
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 16, 2021
“Keep going, bro. You’re going to play so long that people are going to forget we even played together.”
Wade and James played together in two different teams, starting with the Miami Heat, teaming up for four seasons. They made the Finals in each campaign, winning two titles in the process.
After that, they reunited in Cleveland, but things didn’t work so well for them. Wade ended up landing in Miami again after being traded from the Cavaliers. He retired in 2019 after a terrific career, winning three rings, a Finals MVP (2006), becoming a 13x NBA All-Star, and one scoring championship, among other honors.
He created a terrific duo with King James, which will be hard to forget for fans. So, don’t worry, Dwyane. LeBron’s longevity won’t make people forget about your incredible plays.
