Dwyane Wade on LeBron James’ secret work ethic driving him towards legendary NBA career: “You know you’re watching something special”

LeBron James was brought up in Dwyane Wade’s recent conversation with Sports Illustrated. The former Miami Heat guard and James had the most notorious runs together in the city's history. So, if anyone is going to know the secrets to James’ work ethic, it is D-Wade.

LeBron has been a high-key phenom since he was in high school and has never wavered in his dominance. Fresh off a dominant performance against the leaders of the East, regardless of the LA Lakers' 122-118 overtime loss to the Boston Celtics, James continues to prove his work ethic is insurmountable.

The 37-year-old almost brought the Celtics down with 33 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. James' ability to put numbers like that up against a young and dominant Boston squad is admirable.

James has had such crazy and impactful seasons across different squads that his legacy can be referred to in parts. And one of the craziest parts was "The Decision," when he left the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Heat in 2010.

Basketball fans alike are well aware of the moment James decided to leave the Cavs. Cleveland was furious to say the least, many fans felt personally betrayed by James. But this decision paired a young James up with two legendary players — D Wade and Chris Bosh.

From their experience together, Wade recalled to Sports Illustrated:

“If Ray Allen was going to shoot afterwards, he’s going to go shoot with Ray Allen, with Ray’s form. He wants to be better than everybody at everything. … When you see a guy like that who has the body to be able to do that, and he has the energy to be able to consistently do that, you know you’re watching something special”

Some argue that the Miami LeBron was, in fact, prime LeBron. Dwyane Wade believes that James was in his prime during his tenure for the Heat. With back-to-back championships together, Wade has a lot to back his contention.

James’ first year in Miami was met with a lot of media scrutiny, but he kept his head towards basketball. It paid off for him, Wade and Bosh.

After that year simmered, there was the 2011-12 lockout. James used this time to workout with Hakeem Olajuwon to improve his post-up game. That is the type of dedication Dwyane Wade is talking about.

“We definitely had him in his prime, and he listened to everything and soaked up that we had to offer and everything he brought with him,” Wade said.

Examples of LeBron James' work ethic

We can start with James’ 2014 broken-nose tenure. The "black mask LeBron" was not someone to be trifled with as he used this time to prove absolutely nothing could stop him. The 2013-14 season of LeBron’s nose injury, he averaged 27.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.9 blocks.

Between 2006 and 2014, LeBron James increased his field-goal percentage steadily season after season. He started at 47.6% in the 2006-07 season and built his way up to a reliable 57.0% in the 2013-14 season.

LeBron’s 2016 NBA Finals comeback needs to be mentioned regardless of it being common knowledge. That playoff run against the reigning champions, the Golden State Warriors, up 3-1 was one of the highest showings of proper work ethic. James did not stop that entire series.

James also used to get a special scouting report before every game. His teammates would get a two-page report, while James would get a more in-depth, four-page report.

There were multiple people in Miami that explained in the past LeBron was able to run every play in Miami’s playbook from any position. That is crazy.

In 2012, after being trained by Olajuwon, James practiced with Miami’s bigs daily. The end result was so that he could teach himself how to play power forward.

There are numerous instances one can use to outline LeBron’s work ethic. One being his list of trophies and accolades. But these all show the extra steps that James takes to maintain his elite level of dominance.