I've been holding my tongue for the entire playoffs. I've been itching to talk about how this second year player has taken over the N.B.A. spotlight. Forget Kobe and Garnett, McGrady and Yao. This young gunner from Marquette has played some really amazing ball. We've been waiting for someone to step up and be the next big thing. Dwayne Wade has most certainly been doing that.
But we've all been a little hesitant in announcing his arrival as a great player. No need to put the jinxy on yet another "chosen one", right? First there was Grant Hill. But sadly, that left ankle of his grounded him for quite some time. Then there was Allen Iverson. Al Illy is still one of my favorites, but we all know that frequent trade rumors and a reputation for not being crazy about "practice" wouldn't necessarily lead him to topdog status. Besides, there's something about his personality that makes us want to root for him in that underdog sort of way. The next man to step up to the plate was Vince Carter. He has had three strikes against him throughout his career. Canada, injuries and...Canada. Moving his game to New Jersey wasn't exactly a step up, folks. Who wants to work in Jersey!? (Oops! I think the N.B.A. offices are in Jersey.) Shout out to the N.B.A. and shout out to New Jersey- one of the finest states in the Union! (Whew. That was close.)
Of course, there have been other potential "heir apparents" who have come and gone that either can't get past the first round of the playoffs (Tracy McGrady), can't get a good enough supporting cast (Kevin Garnett) or can't quite handle the leading role by themselves (Kobe). That's why Dwayne Wade has got us all excited.
We've been waiting for the next big thing for quite some time now. And we are all a little nervous to admit that D-Wade might be the guy to fill that role because we don't want to be wrong once again. But some very influential people have been hinting at Wade's greatness for a while. "I think we drafted someone special.", said Pat Riley. "His composure and maturity is what this league needs.", David Stern declared. "He's one of the top 5 players in the N.B.A.", hailed Charles Barkley. I wouldn't exactly describe Chuck as "influential", but you get my drift.
We all think that Dwayne Wade is IT. But many of us are afraid to admit that. None of us wants to be tricked, bamboozled or led astray. Afterall, it's way too early in his career to possess such an abundance of talent, skill and basketball greatness, right? 40 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocked shots, 1 steal and 10 for 10 from the free throw line against the defending champs can sometimes be misleading.
At the start of the 2004-2005 season, experts and amateurs alike, insisted on casting Dwayne Wade as the sidekick in the Miami version of Shaq-man and Robin. There was nothing wrong with that. It was a good, solid choice that any producer would have made and no one looks silly in the end. Let's keep it that way. We can safely say that Dwayne Wade is a really good player. Nothing ventured, nothing hurt.
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