The Miami Heat’s blowout loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday brought back painful memories for Dwyane Wade.
In fact, the Heat legend said that the loss was the worst one the team had suffered dating back to Game 2 of the 2011 NBA Finals.
Wade can joke about this now, but a win at the time would’ve given the Heat a commanding 2-0 series lead versus the Dallas Mavericks.
Though Wade may only be teasing his Twitter followers about the comparison, that particular defeat in the championship round was pivotal as it changed the course of the series. The Mavs used the momentum of that win and went on to claim the title in a 4-2 series victory.
The loss was difficult to swallow for fans, players and the organization itself. A win in 2011 would have given the Heat its second championship and would have ultimately given Miami the chance to go for the eventual three-peat since they won the following two titles.
Given all that, it seems like quite a stretch to compare a game early in the regular season to a pivotal game in the NBA Finals.
Nonetheless, the embarrassing 113-86 defeat at the hands of the Sixers on Saturday was a painful reminder for the Heat of how easy it is to be brought back down to earth.
It stands to reason that Heat star Jimmy Butler was most impacted by the loss, as he spent the majority of last season playing on the Sixers. However, the Heat star previously said he didn’t care much about the reaction from fans in Philly.
“To tell you the truth, I legit didn’t even pay attention,” Butler said. “I really don’t pay attention to it.”
Despite the loss, the Heat’s 11-4 record is still good for the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.