Wade: Last season with Lebron "wasn't fun."

http://nypost.com/2014/10/03/dwyane-wade-last-season-with-lebron-wasnt-fun/


Dwyane Wade: Last season with LeBron ‘wasn’t fun’


By Justin Terranova

October 3, 2014 | 2:08pm



Dwyane Wade will miss LeBron James, but not the expectations and attention that accompanied his superstar former teammate.

In a revealing interview with Bleacher Report, Wade talks about the immense pressure the Heat faced last season as they tried to three-peat and the renewed energy around the club with James returning to his hometown Cavaliers.

“I don’t know,” Wade told the website. “It’s hard to say, man, because you want it. We wanted it. So it’s hard to say that. You don’t know exactly what’s going to come with it, but we put ourselves in that position.

“But sometimes you can put too much on yourself, all of us, and it becomes a black cloud around. Last year wasn’t fun. I mean, there was no stretch of it [that was] fun. That whole season, to me, it’s amazing we made it to the Finals. It’s just honest.”

James, Wade and Chris Bosh reached four straight Finals and won two championships in their four seasons together in Miami. The Heat and team president Pat Riley wanted to bring all three back after they opted out of their contracts following a five-game Finals dismantling by the Spurs.


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After James went home to Cleveland, Bosh and Wade did decide to return with a new supporting cast that includes Luol Deng, Danny Granger and Josh McRoberts.

“Just this year, coming in, I can see, even in the coaches, there’s just a different renewed focus and energy,” Wade said.

“No one knows what it’s going to lead to. No one knows if that’s going to lead to a Finals win or Finals loss or not the Finals at all. But right now it’s good for everyone to come in every day and want to be here.”

While Bosh re-signed for the max, Wade took a two-year, $31.1 million deal that could be his last contract in the league. The 32-year-old has battled knee injuries in recent seasons and saw diminished playing time while trying to remain healthy for the playoffs.

“It was great, you know, we went to the Finals four years in a row, and it was everything we wanted from that standpoint, but sometimes throughout that run, at certain times, it just wasn’t fun,” Wade said. “Individually, it was great having certain relationships and having my best friend here with me, but all of us didn’t have fun all the time.

“I think now I’m at the point where I want to enjoy the game. Because once I’ve won three championships and been so successful, you’ve got to have something to play for. And I want to be able to play for my teammates and just the joy of the game.”

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Of course he'll say this now. If Lebron had stayed, Wade would have kept his trap shut.


KJ

Love it when "me ball" implodes and showers droppings on its practitioners.

Sam

I have to disagree. Watching them play the role of Washington Generals in the finals was incredibly fun.

Good one, Outside.  By the way, do you know whether you might be able to get up San Francisco to join Bob Heckler and me (and anyone else who's available sometime during the period of October 25-30?  Ironically, right after that, my wife and I will be going to South Beach.  (It would never be our choice but her college girl friends will be holding a mini-reunion there.  I'm going only to protect her from Miami Vice.)

Sam

Sam,

Regarding the late October meet-up, it's not looking good. My wife's parents (ages 90 and 91) have been beset by health issues, and we've had another turn the wrong way. My wife is the primary caregiver for them, and I'm in a support role, somewhat for them but mostly for my wife.

If things improve, I'll do what I can to make the trip, but it's been a rocky couple of months, and each time we think it's turned a corner, ka-bam -- another setback. At 90, they just don't bounce back like they used to.

I really, really want to make it up there. It's not every day that you make it out this way, even if it's still 450 miles away, and I owe Bob about two cases of Anchor Steam (though maybe those threads have been purged into the ether by now). Here's hoping.

Outside,

Very understandable. We all go through certain stages of life, and the role reversal where the parents become the children is one of them. I'm very familiar with the frustration of one apparent success being overcome by a new challenge. Don't worry about San Francisco. It'll probably be there a while, and I hope we'll be back. We try to get out there about every two years.

Sam