Dwyane Wade took to social media to shout out Oklahoma City Thunder player Isaiah Joe for a thunderous dunk he made while wearing the namesake shoe of the former Miami Heat superstar.
Joe made the dunk in the second quarter of the Thunder’s loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday. The reserve is playing in his fourth NBA season, his second with Oklahoma City after starting his career with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 24-year-old is averaging 8.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game in 68 appearances — all off the bench — this season. He scored 17 points in the 132-126 loss on Wednesday.
Oklahoma City was playing without All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was sidelined by a thigh injury. Joe was called on to play a season-high 33:27 in the overtime contest. The University of Arkansas product was a second-round pick (No. 49 overall) in the 2020 NBA Draft.
The Way of Wade line was started in 2012 as a partnership between the former NBA superstar and former Olympic champion gymnast Li Ning. It released its first six signature shoes in 2013. Current Los Angeles Lakers star D’Angelo Russell signed with the brand in 2019.
Wade remains connected to the league and weighs in on certain events on social media from time to time. Earlier this month, the 42-year-old acknowledged Russell establishing a new Lakers record for 3-pointers made in a single season and chimed in after former Heat teammate and current Lakers superstar LeBron James reached the 40,000-point milestone in his career.
Joe’s spectacular dunk did not prevent the Rockets from winning their 10th game in a row. The late-season surge has pushed Houston two games over the .500 mark with a 37-35 record. The Rockets are in 11th place in the Western Conference, one game behind the Golden State Warriors for 10th place and the final position in the play-in round with 10 games remaining.
Wade almost certainly also has his eyes on the Heat entering the final stages on the regular season. Miami is in seventh place in the Eastern Conference with a 39-33 record heading into its game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.