Dwyane Wade, an explosive finisher and one of the most dangerous scorers in the NBA, has paid the price for his physical style of play.
As he looks ahead to the 2013-14 season and his Miami Heat chasing a third consecutive NBA championship, the Miami Heat guard understands that his game will have to change.
"The older you get, the less you want to go inside and get banged around," Wade told USA TODAY Sports. "So I want to be more of a consistent outside shooter."
Dwyane Wade, an explosive finisher and one of the most dangerous scorers in the NBA, has paid the price for his physical style of play.
As he looks ahead to the 2013-14 season and his Miami Heat chasing a third consecutive NBA championship, the Miami Heat guard understands that his game will have to change.
"The older you get, the less you want to go inside and get banged around," Wade told USA TODAY Sports. "So I want to be more of a consistent outside shooter."
The 30-year old played through knee injuries all season and into the playoffs, resulting in inconsistent play in the postseason. The San Antonio Spurs saw him as such a non-threat that they often completely ignored him on the perimeter.
"I just want to be a little more comfortable behind the arc," Wade said. "I know this year I didn't shoot as many threes, so if I have to, I want to be more confident in it."
Even with these adjustments Wade plans to make in his game, he understands that the Heat's latest title was a team effort. LeBron James was MVP in the seven-game win vs. the Spurs and Wade had 23 in that Game 7 win, it was the play of unheralded players who helped carry them to the title.
Shane Battier, Mike Miller and Mario Chalmers played key rolls in the playoffs and Finals alongside the Big Three. But according to Wade, no role player was more crucial to Miami's championship run than midseason signee Chris "Birdman" Andersen.
"When Birdman came to the team, he really changed the (center) position and gave us that athletic guy who could finish, could block shots, just did a lot of great things for us," Wade said. "Without him, I don't know if we would have been able to win a championship."
Who will be this year's Birdman? Wade doesn't know, but he says there's always room for improvement, even for a two-time defending champion.
"You always try to see if you can add something throughout the year," Wade said. "We added Birdman this year and Ray Allen over the summer and Shane Battier the summer before, so you never know. Right now I think we're a good team, but you're always looking to get better."
Even if they aren't able to add another impact player, Wade is still confident about the Heat's chances at a three-peat.
"I think we have a pretty good team," he said. "If we come back with the same team, we'll be pretty good."
Sweet....
