Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Miami Heat in the NBA (National Basketball Association).  He was born January 17th, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois.  Wade went to Harold L. Richards high school in Oak Lawn, Illinois.  After high school he attended Marquette University from 2000 to 2003.  Wade is one of the most respected and best players in the NBA.  Wade’s biggest accomplishments include winning the NBA Finals three times in 2006, 2012, and 2013. He also won Finals MVP in 2006.  He is one of the most popular and successful players in the NBA.

As I mentioned earlier, Wade was born on January 17th, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois.  His parents are JoLinda and Dwyane Wade Sr.  Wade describes his childhood as being very rough, growing up in south Chicago.  His mother had a very serious drug addiction that had her in and out of jail several times.  Because of her addiction his parents got divorced when he was only four months old.  His mother was given custody of Dwyane and his sister, Tragil and they lived in his mother’s house.  In interviews, Wade has explained seeing his mother shoot up and the police came into the house armed with guns searching for his mother one night.  When Wade was 8 years old Tragil tricked him into going to live with their father, by telling him they were going to the movies.  Wade turned to sports to get himself through the tough times, especially basketball and football.  Wade’s favorite team was the Chicago Bulls and his favorite player was Michael Jordan.  In high school he had to fight to get playing time as a junior on the varsity basketball team.  His senior year he led his team to a 25-4 record and to the sectional finals.  During his senior year he set school records for points and steals.  He has said that his high school coach, Jack Fitzgerald, was one of the most positive influences for him in his life.  Wade was recruited by three college basketball teams DePaul University, Illinois State, and Marquette University.  Wade choose to play for Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

Wade was ineligible to play in his freshman season for academic reasons.  Wade found a tutor, improved his grades, and he was eligible to play in his sophomore year for the basketball team.  That season he led the team in points and the conference in steals. Marquette finished with a 26-7 record, their best record since the 1993-94 season.  In his junior year Wade led Marquette to a record of 27-6.  He led the team in scoring and led them to the school’s first and only Conference USA championship.  In the national tournament Wade led them to the Final Four, Marquette’s first since their championship season in 1977.  That season he was named to the All-America First Team by the Associated Press.  He was the school’s first All-American since the 1977 season.  Wade’s performance in the Midwest Region Final was highly publicized and spring boarded him up the boards for the NBA draft. Against the top seeded Kentucky Wildcats Wade posted a triple-double.  With 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, it was only the fourth triple-double in NCAA tournament history.  Due to his importance to Marquette’s basketball team his jersey was retired on February 3, 2007.  Wade’s performance in the NCAA tournament gave him national attention that got attention from NBA teams. 

Wade elected to not return to Marquette for his senior year and declared for the NBA draft.  Wade was selected 5th overall in the 2003 NBA draft by the Miami Heat.  Wade averaged 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists in his rookie season with the Heat.  He was a key player for the Heat, who finished 42-40 that season, and made the playoffs.  Wade was voted to the 2004 NBA All Rookie Team.  Wade still had something to prove though, as his success was not covered as much as his fellow rookies that season: LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.  Wade finished third in rookie of the year voting behind James and Anthony. In the playoffs his rookie year, the Heat won their first series and moved on to the second round where they lost to the top seeded Indiana Pacers in 6 games in a best of 7 series.

Wade emerged as one of the best players in the league in his second season with the Heat.  The Heat finished an Eastern Conference best 59-23 record in his second season.  The Heat swept the Nets in the first round of the playoffs.  In the second round Wade averaged 31 points per game as they swept the Washington Wizards and moved on to play in the Eastern Conference Finals.  The Heat lost in 7 games to the Detroit Pistons and their season ended there.  They lost, despite holding a 3 game to 2 game advantage in the series, losing the final 2 games.  Wade was selected to the All Star game in 2005 where he scored 14 points coming off the bench.
In the 2005-06 season Wade was selected to his second All Star Game and this time he was a starter.  Wade made the game winning shot and led his team to a win.  Wade also won his first NBA championship that season along with winning Finals MVP.  The Heat beat the Bulls in the first round of the playoffs that season and eventually Wade led them to the Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.  Wade battled injuries all through the playoffs, including the flu during the Finals.  Wade scored 42, 36, and 43 points in games three, four, and five during the Finals.  This came after the Heat had a 0-2 deficit in the Finals.  Due to his terrific play Miami took a 3-2 series lead.  The Heat won game six to win the series, and the finals 4-2.  His performance in the Finals that year is considered to be the best ever in the Finals by any player in NBA history. 

Wade’s next 2 seasons were shortened by injuries.  In the 2006-07 season Wade missed 31 out of 82 games due to injuries.  Even with the injuries Wade was selected to his third straight All Star Game.  The Heat started the first half of the season well and seemed poised to make another playoff run until Wade dislocated his left shoulder in a game against the Houston Rockets.  In the playoffs the Heat were swept by the Bulls in the first round.  During the offseason Wade underwent shoulder surgery and missed the first 7 games of the 2007-08 season. With the Heat having one of the worst records in the NBA that season, Wade sat out the final 21 games to undergo more treatment on his left knee.  In 2008 he led the U.S. Men’s National team to a gold medal at the Olympics, he was the team’s leading scorer.  At the start of the 2008-09 season Wade was fully recovered and ready to go.  Wade was selected for his fifth straight All Star Game and led the league in scoring.  With Wade back Miami became only the second team in NBA history to make the playoffs after having 15 or less wins the season before.  However, the Heat would not make it past the first round in the playoffs.  In the 2009-10 season Wade was selected to his sixth All Star Game.  They would finish the season with a record of 47-35.  Unfortunately they would lose to Boston in the first round of the playoffs.

Everything changed for Miami in the offseason of 2010.  With the Heat struggling to get success in the playoffs, they decided to go out and get some free agents to help them.   They ended up getting 2 of the leagues best players: Chris Bosh and LeBron James.  Wade, James, and Bosh would be come to know as the big 3.  Everyone expected them to win the title in the first season.  The Heat finished with a 58-24 record in the first season of the big 3.  In the playoffs however they would lose to Dallas in the NBA finals, coming up just a couple games short of the title.  In the 2011-12 team Wade again made the All Star Game and posted only the third triple double in All Star Game history.  That year the Heat again made it to the Finals, and this time won.  This would be the first of back to back titles for the Heat.  In the 2012-13 season Wade underwent knee surgery before the start of the season.  Wade would have limited minutes in their run to their second straight championship.  Wade would miss 18 games in the 2013-14 season, and the Heat would lose in the Finals to the team that had beat them the previous year, the San Antonio Spurs.  Both James and Bosh would leave before the start of the 2014-15 season, leaving Wade as the lone member of the big 3 to stay in Miami.  The heat finished with a 35-47 record, and Wade missed the playoffs for only the second time in his career. 

Currently Wade is still playing for the Miami Heat in the current NBA season. They are expected to make another deep into the playoffs and have a chance to win the championship yet again. This would be Wade’s fourth championship and 12th appearance at the All Star Game if he is selected.