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LeBron James broke the hearts of Ohio basketball fans when he left the Cleveland Cavaliers to join Dwyane Wade in Miami. After seven championship-less seasons in Cleveland, “King James” took his talents to South Beach to chase a title with his good buddy.
“D-Wade,” on the “Point Forward” podcast, opened up on how one of the biggest moves in NBA history started:
“It never crossed my mind. Playing in an All-Star game or playing in summer games or playing in the Olympics, that’s one thing. But playing in an NBA season together? That’s way different. … It wasn’t nothing that was on my mind until we started going through the process of free agency.
“LeBron, at that time, was MVP, scoring champ, all these things. Those individual accolades are dope. but then at some point, there’s no feeling you get nothing when the season ends. He wanted something more than just those individual accolades. ... And he realized he couldn’t do it on his own.”
Before joining forces in Miami in the summer of 2010, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade were teammates on the 2004 and 2008 Olympic teams. They had also played together multiple times in All-Star games.
Wade was already a champion and an NBA Finals MVP when James came over to try to win one of his own with the Heat. “King James” was already a regular-season MVP and scoring champ when he made “The Decision” to leave the Cavs.
Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley added Chris Bosh to the mix to form the NBA’s most lethal trio. Everyone was expecting the newly formed juggernaut to own the Larry O'Brien Trophy over the next several years.
LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh went 2-for-4 in the NBA Finals
LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh tantalized Miami Heat fans during their introduction to bring not one, not two, not three, not four championships. They ultimately ended up with two titles in four straight NBA Finals appearances.
Most Heat fans see the four-year run as a huge success. Critics labeled it as averaged at best. They contend that with all the firepower at their disposal, they should have gone unbeaten in the finals.
Miami’s first NBA Finals under LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh era went down in flames. It was considered to be one of the biggest upsets in finals history after they lost to Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in 2011.
2012 was finally the year the trio put it all together as they beat the rising power in the West led by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Miami would repeat in 2013, which critics would pounce on as Ray Allen shot away from disaster.
In a rematch with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014, the Heat were blown off the floor by the Spurs’ “Beautiful Game.” The series against the Spurs was the last time the trio played together.
James returned to Cleveland after the loss to the Spurs and delivered on his promise to bring a title to the success-starved city.
Guess the Lakers players!
