Let’s face it, in order for the Miami Heat to reach the NBA Finals, they’re most likely going to have to go through the powerhouse Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
That means Dwyane Wade will be going up against former teammate and close friend LeBron James.
According to Jalen Rose of ESPN, if the two end up meeting in the semifinals, this is where Wade and the Heat need to turn from friend to foe:
“So besides the obvious Golden State and the Spurs, the individual intriguing series that I’m looking forward to will be that one, because the dynamic that’s going to have to play out is something we as fans really wanted to see every time the Cavs went back to Miami, and in particular the last time when they got blown out and LeBron was fraternizing with D‑Wade during the game, and we know from talking to Coach Blatt and talking to the general manager, he’s basically played great basketball since.
“So the great thing that’s going to have to happen for the Cavs to advance is there’s going to have to be a hatred, there’s going to have to be a dislike that LeBron is going to need to carry versus that former jersey that he hasn’t and against his brother Dwyane Wade and against his team that he won two championships with, and vice versa. I’m really fascinated to see how that’s going to play out because Wade, if they were losing by 25, if he was down there fraternizing with LeBron, I don’t know who would have go to him first between Pat (Riley) or Spo (Erik Spoelstra).”
What Rose is saying is essentially that Wade cannot fraternize with James at any cost on the basketball court. Whatever they do off the court after the playoffs is their own business, but in order for the Heat to have a chance of advancing, they need to “hate” James and the Cavaliers come playoff time.
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