Dwyane Wade ended his NBA career with a triple-double Wednesday night, finishing with 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 113-94 loss to the Nets.
Wade, 37, says he is “happy with this season” despite the Miami Heat missing out on the playoffs.
The Banana Boat Crew of LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony made the trek to Brooklyn to give their good friend a proper send-off.
Per The AP:
“CP played last night, we had our last regular-season game last night and Melo’s right here in New York so we kind of made the plan, made the decision to come up here,” James said. “Listen, we couldn’t miss D-Wade’s last game. This is the last time he’s going to be on an NBA floor wearing that Miami Heat uniform, that No. 3, so we’re happy to be here to support.”
Afterward, Wade finished his season-long custom of exchanging jerseys with players by giving his to Anthony. Anthony was one of the people who persuaded Wade to return this season and enjoy a farewell tour, but then he didn’t last long enough with the Houston Rockets to play against Miami.
“I didn’t get an opportunity to play against Melo this year and exchange jerseys with him,” Wade said. “That was a missing piece out of this whole season, so everything worked out great for him being here, for me having an opportunity to give him my jersey.”
The Heat hoped the final game would matter, but the Nets and Orlando Magic had clinched spots over the weekend to leave only one spot left coming into the last week. Miami was eliminated from contention for it despite its victory Tuesday.
“For me, I’m happy with this season,” Wade said. “Unfortunately for our organization and our team we weren’t able to put ourselves in a position to win enough games to be in the playoffs, but for what I wanted for this season, I’m happy to say that I completed that.”
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