Dwyane Wade has always been a player who has let his basketball speak for itself. A well-regarded figure both on and off the court, Wade truly left his mark on the NBA. During a 16-year career, Wade was a three-time champion, and 13-time All-Star. Wade is also 32nd on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, with 23,165 career points. He is perhaps best remembered for his role in the “Big Three” alongside Chris Bosh and Lebron James. Wade was seen as a no-doubt first-ballot Hall of Famer upon his retirement. However, Wade remained active in basketball following his retirement, buying a minority share in the Utah Jazz in 2021. Wade went as far as to call then-Jazz star Donovan Mitchell “Dwyane Wade 2.0”.
Wade officially became a first-ballot Hall of Famer earlier this year. He joins one of the most stacked Hall of Fame classes of all time. Wade enters the Hall alongside legends such as Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Gregg Popovich, and Becky Hammon. Other inductees included the late Jim Valvano and the 1976 Women’s Olympic Basketball Team. Wade, along with other inductees, will officially be enshrined in the Hall later today (August 12). However, Wade has already received one of the customary recognitions.
Wade Receives His Orange Jacket
In a ceremony held on August 11, Wade was given his official Hall of Fame orange jacket. His jacket was presented by one of Wade's heroes, fellow NBA icon Allen Iverson. "It means everything to me," Wade told PEOPLE. "I wear the number three jersey because of Allen Iverson and just have so much respect for that man. No one has been able to use [Iverson] yet, and that I'm the first one to be able to say Allen Iverson has presented me into the Hall of Fame…that right there, if you tell 17-year-old Dwyane that, I wouldn't believe you."
Initially, Wade wanted his longtime Miami Heat co-star Udonis Haslem to present him. However, your presenter must be an existing Hall of Famer and Haslem only announced his retirement this offseason. "So, when I started thinking about guys that are Hall-of-Famers, guys that I looked up to, right away three names came to mind," Wade says. "It's Michael Jordan, it's Kobe Bryant, and it's Allen Iverson. Obviously, my brother Kobe couldn't be in that seat, couldn't be in one of those chairs to present me in." Eventually, Wade settled on the Sixers legend.
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