LeBron James and Dwyane Wade do not hate each other.
I repeat: LeBron James and Dwyane Wade do not hate each other.
Phew, that was a close one. I, like you, was worried there for a minute. The source of our anxiety was ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, who penned a solid column on how the two are able to coexist on the Miami Heat. Within the text, however, he implied the two aren’t exactly the best of friends:
Wade and James often refer to themselves as friends, but those close to them say that’s not exactly accurate. They are friendly. More important, though, they have shown a commitment to working with each other.
To be clear, he’s not insinuating the two despise or resent one another. He’s just saying they’re not the best of friends. Think of them like the guys in Fight Club. Outside of Fight Club, they don’t talk about Fight Club. Or each other, for that matter.
Which, if I may say, is the most tragic thing to happen since ABC decided to back Super Fun Night. That’s all assuming Windhorst’s point is accurate, which if you ask Wade, it isn’t.
Wade fielded some questions on Twitter over the weekend and one follower asked him if what Windhorst wrote was true, to which he responded: Shows how much he knows.
“@beca_arocha: @DwyaneWade how close are u and @KingJames ? Windhorst wrote that you aren't friends just friendly?”(shows how much he knws)
— THREE (@DwyaneWade) October 20, 2013
Thankfully, we can all breathe again. Nothing would have ruined our day like the thought of LeBron and Wade not breaking bread together off the court. Or the notion that they don’t vacation, fight crime and engage in no-holds-barred pillow fights together. That would have been the worst.
In the interest of being semi-serious, it’s difficult to imagine them not being legitimate friends. Though I understand championships make the heart grow fonder, it’s not as if they haven’t come at great personal sacrifice for these two.
LeBron took a pay cut to join Wade. Acquaintances don’t do that just because they think they can win next to someone. It wasn’t a large pay cut, but still…
More importantly, LeBron came into Wade’s house. And Wade let him. I find it impossible to believe that they wouldn’t have started fresh elsewhere if they were anything less than best friends forever.
If and when LeBron leaves the Heat, then that would be a time for doubting their friendship. Right now, after a second straight championship, there’s no reason to start dissecting their relationship or considering it’s strictly business and not pleasure. These two like each other. They haven’t suddenly turned into the Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard of South Beach, and Windhorst didn’t say they did.
But he did cause at least one of Wade’s followers to sweat it out; to operate under the assumption that their ties sever with each final buzzer. In what is seemingly one of the closest-knit locker rooms in the NBA, and what is a team that was seemingly founded upon the bonds of legitimate friendship, that’s a big no-no.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com. Follow @danfavale on Twitter for his latest posts and all things NBA.
