Cleveland Cavaliers guard Dwyane Wade and Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem showed their appreciation for one another by swapping jersey’s after Wednesday night’s game.
The Cavs, now winners of nine straight games (longest active streak in the NBA) may have came out on top (108-87), but that didn’t stop these two long-time friends from showing their mutual respects.
As most hoops fans know, the bond between Wade and Haslem goes back to their days as teammates in South Beach. In 2006, the two players brought the Miami Heat their first championship in franchise history, defeating the Dallas Mavericks in 4-2 fashion. As a result of his great play in that series, Wade was given the Finals MVP award.
The friendship between Wade and Haslem doesn’t end there, though. When the Heat acquired LeBron James and Chris Bosh in 2010, the dawn of a new era began in South Florida. “The Big 3,” as Wade, James, and Bosh came to be known, quickly became a force to be reckoned with. Though they fell to the Dallas Mavericks in the 2011 Finals (4-2), the trio went on to win a second NBA championship for Miami in 2012 — James’ first.
To this day, Haslem is still well-respected throughout the NBA. Heat fans simply love “U-D,” as he’s came to be known. It seems as though Wade has an equally great respect for his former teammate.