Background and career
Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. ( DWAYN or doo-WY-ayn, born January 17, 1982) is an American basketball executive and former professional player who is a co-owner of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also currently the host of the American adaptation of The Cube. Nicknamed "D-Wade" and "Flash", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest shooting guards in NBA history. Wade spent the majority of his 16-year career playing for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and won three NBA championships, was a 13-time NBA All-Star, an eight-time member of the All-NBA Team, and a three-time member of the All-Defensive Team. Wade is also Miami's all-time leader in points, games played, assists, steals, shots made, and shots taken. After a successful college basketball career with the Marquette Golden Eagles, including leading the team to the Final Four in 2003, Wade was drafted fifth overall in the 2003 NBA draft by the Heat. In his third season, Wade led the Heat to their first NBA Championship and was named the 2006 NBA Finals MVP. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, he led the United States men's basketball team, commonly known as the "Redeem Team", in scoring and helped them capture the gold medal. In the 2008–09 season, Wade led the league in both total points (2,386) and points per game (30.2), the latter stat earning him his lone NBA scoring title. Wade was selected as the NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2010. With LeBron James and Chris Bosh, he helped guide Miami to four consecutive NBA Finals from 2011 to 2014, and won back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013. In July 2016, Wade briefly left Miami to play for the Chicago Bulls and the Cleveland Cavaliers for a season and a half before being traded back to Miami in February 2018 where he finished his playing career and retired in 2019. The Heat retired Wade's #3 jersey in 2020. He purchased a minority ownership stake in the Utah Jazz in 2021 and became a minority stakeholder of the WNBA's Chicago Sky in 2023. In October 2021, Wade was honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. He has been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame twice: in 2023 for his individual career, and in 2025 as a member of the Redeem Team.
Wade was born the second of two children to JoLinda and Dwyane Wade Sr. in Chicago, Illinois, on January 17, 1982. Wade attributes the erroneous spelling of his and his father's first name to his grandmother. JoLinda already had two children when she married Wade's father, and with him she had Dwyane and his older sister Tragil. The pair separated when Wade was four months old. He described his early childhood in the South Side of Chicago as "trying". When his parents got divorced, JoLinda was given custody of Wade and his sister. JoLinda struggled with drug addiction and often committed crimes that sent her to prison. At eight years old, Tragil tricked Dwyane into thinking they were going to the movie theater, only to take him to live with his father and stepmother. Wade visited his mother on occasion until his father moved the family to Robbins, Illinois, after which Wade would not see her for two years. Wade turned to basketball and football, avoiding the temptations of drugs and gangs. Wade credited Tragil as the person most responsible for pointing him in the right direction. Wade grew up idolizing Michael Jordan and modeled his game after him. On October 14, 2001, as Wade's basketball career blossomed, JoLinda vowed to turn her life around. She says that she has not used drugs since 2003.
Wade played basketball and football for Harold L. Richards High School in Oak Lawn. He immediately excelled as a wide receiver and also played as a backup quarterback, but success in basketball took longer. Wade grew four inches by the start of his junior year and emerged as the team leader, averaging 20.7 points and 7.6 rebounds. Wade's improvement continued into his senior year, when he averaged 27 points and 11 rebounds. Wade led the Bulldogs to a 24–5 record and to a Class AA Eisenhower Sectional appearance. He set school records for points scored (676) and steals made (106). Wade credited coach Jack Fitzgerald as a seminal and positive influence. Wade was recruited to play basketball only by Marquette, Illinois State, and DePaul due to low ACT scores.
Wade committed to Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to play under coach Tom Crean. In his freshman year, Wade was sidelined by NCAA Proposition 48, which set academic eligibility requirements for participation in Division I sports. Effort and tutoring sufficiently raised his academic standing so that Wade became eligible by the start of his sophomore year. Wade chose to wear the jersey number 3, due to the Holy Trinity, and as a tribute to Allen Iverson, who Wade described as a hero of culture. He would continue to wear this jersey while on the Heat.
Wade led the Marquette Golden Eagles in scoring with 17.8 points (ppg) and led Conference USA in both steals per game with 2.47 and two-point field goals made with 205; he averaged 6.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists. Marquette finished with a 26–7 record, their best since the 1993–94 season.
Wade again led the school in scoring with 21.5 points and the Golden Eagles finished with a 27–6 record. Three days after JoLinda was released from prison, she saw Wade play basketball for the first time in five years as Marquette upset the Cincinnati Bearcats, 70–61, to capture the Conference USA title on March 8, 2003. He helped bring the Golden Eagles to the Final Four for the first time since their 1977 national championship season. Wade was subsequently named to the All-America First Team by the Associated Press (AP), making him the first basketball player from Marquette to receive the distinction since 1978. Wade's performance during the Midwest Regional final drew national attention. Against a top-seeded Kentucky team, he delivered 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, including a memorable breakaway dunk, as Marquette upset the Wildcats, 83–69, and advanced to the Final Four for the first time since 1977. Wade's triple double was the fourth ever recorded in NCAA tournament history. The Golden Eagles finished their season as No. 6 in the AP Poll, Marquette's highest ranking since 1976–77. Wade was named the MVP of the Midwest Regional. His performance earned him a high NBA draft projection. As a result, Wade skipped his senior year to enter the 2003 NBA draft. Marquette retired Wade's No. 3 jersey on February 3, 2007. It ordinarily requires student-athletes to have graduated for jersey retirement, but made an exception for Wade.
