Miami Herald Logo

Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade intends to play despite painful knee injury: ‘It is what it is’ | Miami Herald

×
  • E-edition
  • Home
    • Site Information
    • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Herald Store
    • RSS Feeds
    • Special Sections
    • Advertise
    • Advertise with Us
    • Media Kit
    • Mobile
    • Mobile Apps & eReaders
    • Newsletters
    • Social
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Google+
    • Instagram
    • YouTube

    • Sections
    • News
    • South Florida
    • Miami-Dade
    • Broward
    • Florida Keys
    • Florida
    • Politics
    • Weird News
    • Weather
    • National & World
    • Colombia
    • National
    • World
    • Americas
    • Cuba
    • Guantánamo
    • Haiti
    • Venezuela
    • Local Issues
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • In Depth
    • Issues & Ideas
    • Traffic
    • Sections
    • Sports
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Pro & College
    • Miami Dolphins
    • Miami Heat
    • Miami Marlins
    • Florida Panthers
    • College Sports
    • University of Miami
    • Florida International
    • University of Florida
    • Florida State University
    • More Sports
    • High School Sports
    • Auto Racing
    • Fighting
    • Golf
    • Horse Racing
    • Outdoors
    • Soccer
    • Tennis
    • Youth Sports
    • Other Sports
    • Politics
    • Elections
    • The Florida Influencer Series
    • Sections
    • Business
    • Business Monday
    • Banking
    • International Business
    • National Business
    • Personal Finance
    • Real Estate News
    • Small Business
    • Technology
    • Tourism & Cruises
    • Workplace
    • Business Plan Challenge
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Cindy Krischer Goodman
    • The Starting Gate
    • Work/Life Balancing Act
    • Movers
    • Sections
    • Living
    • Advice
    • Fashion
    • Food & Drink
    • Health & Fitness
    • Home & Garden
    • Pets
    • Recipes
    • Travel
    • Wine
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Dave Barry
    • Ana Veciana-Suarez
    • Flashback Miami
    • More Living
    • LGBTQ South Florida
    • Palette Magazine
    • Indulge Magazine
    • South Florida Album
    • Broward Album
    • Sections
    • Entertainment
    • Books
    • Comics
    • Games & Puzzles
    • Horoscopes
    • Movies
    • Music & Nightlife
    • People
    • Performing Arts
    • Restaurants
    • TV
    • Visual Arts
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Jose Lambiet
    • Lesley Abravanel
    • More Entertainment
    • Events Calendar
    • Miami.com
    • Contests & Promotions
    • Sections
    • All Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Op-Ed
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Jim Morin
    • Letters to the Editor
    • From Our Inbox
    • Speak Up
    • Submit a Letter
    • Meet the Editorial Board
    • Influencers Opinion
    • Blogs & Columnists
    • Blog Directory
    • Columnist Directory
    • Andres Oppenheimer
    • Carl Hiaasen
    • Leonard Pitts Jr.
    • Fabiola Santiago
    • Obituaries
    • Obituaries in the News
    • Place an Obituary

    • Place an ad
    • All Classifieds
    • Announcements
    • Apartments
    • Auctions/Sales
    • Automotive
    • Commercial Real Estate
    • Employment
    • Garage Sales
    • Legals
    • Merchandise
    • Obituaries
    • Pets
    • Public Notices
    • Real Estate
    • Services
  • Public Notices
  • Cars
  • Jobs
  • Moonlighting
  • Real Estate
  • Mobile & Apps

  • el Nuevo Herald
  • Miami.com
  • Indulge

Latest News

Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade intends to play despite painful knee injury: ‘It is what it is’

BY JOSEPH GOODMAN

    ORDER REPRINT →

May 15, 2013 12:01 AM

The kneecap is moving, banging against the bone bruise, causing one of the best shooting guards in NBA history to average 11.3 points in a playoff series against his hometown team.

Dwyane Wade revealed information about his injured right knee late Monday that he probably would rather have kept private but was forced to divulge after taking a hit in the second quarter and going to the bench. Once there, team trainer Jay Sabol slid Wade’s kneepad downward to reveal a large bandage across his knee. Wade said after the game that the bandage was being used to stabilize his knee in a most unorthodox way — a field dressing of sorts for a basketball star.

“You have a bruise, you try to move the kneecap over so it won’t rub and the tape comes off a little bit when you get the game sweat, so you have to retape it a little bit,” Wade said.

So, it has come to this — moving kneecaps to reduce pain with still one more series until a possible return trip to the NBA Finals. Wade knocked his knee with Bulls defender Jimmy Butler’s and went spinning to the ground in pain during Game 4.

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to the Miami Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was noncommittal Tuesday about Wade playing in Game 5 on Wednesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena, but Wade said Monday night he expected to play.

“There’s really nothing that you can do,” Wade said. “I’ve tried to exhaust all possibility, but it is what it is.”

Said teammate LeBron James: “We’ve got his back as a team and then me, I’m definitely going to pick it up even more because I know what he’s going through. I’m around him each and every day and then at night in the games. It was difficult for him, but he hasn’t made any excuse. He’s just trying to give us what he’s got right now until he starts to feel better.”

Until he starts to feel better

PLAYING WITH PAIN

Wade is in serious pain, but as long as he can manage it, he apparently is OK medically to play as much as he can stand the discomfort. He took only a brief break on the bench after aggravating his knee in the first half Monday — long enough to allow the “shooting pain” to subside and, of course, reposition his kneecap with tape and bandages.

“Some days are better than others,” Wade said. “There’s certain games I might do a move or do something and the shooting pain might come up. This was the first time you all have seen it. Other times I’ve been able to not show you all. But like I said, I came back and helped my team win.”

Can the Heat win a title with Wade far below 100 percent physically and performing like a role player grinding through minutes rather than a superstar who can change a game in an instant? It’s a valid question because the Heat looked to be in dire straits in the 2012 playoffs when Wade’s left knee was in such bad shape that fluid needed to be drained. The Heat fell behind the Indiana Pacers before winning the series in six games.

Spoelstra is confident Wade will still be effective.

“He’s a battler, he’s a warrior, he’ll fight through it, and he never makes excuses for anything and he’s giving us everything he’s got and he’s giving us minutes that help us win — that’s the bottom line,” Spoelstra said of Wade. “I know everyone’s looking at how many shots he’s getting up and how many points he can score. He’s at a point where he knows every series is different, every game is different and the whole point is help us win and he’s doing that.”

Wade had six points in Game 4, and his lack of explosion has taken away his ability to get to the basket. In the series, Wade is 1 of 2 from the free-throw line.

“Is he coming in there and creating 30 a night? No, but he’s creating a lot of good things for us, defensively he’s competing, giving us a presence from the perimeter position to help rebound,” Spoelstra said. “And then offensively he’s making the right plays and oftentimes that’s to throw it back and let the ball start moving, so he’ll continue to get in better rhythm. He had some good actions [Monday night] that hopefully we can lean and build on for Wednesday.”

PICKING UP THE SLACK

For now, it’s up to players such as Chris Bosh, Ray Allen, Norris Cole and Mario Chalmers to carry the load for Wade.

Last year, despite his knee injury, Wade helped propel the Heat past Indiana when Bosh was out with an abdominal injury. It appears Bosh is now doing his part to account for Wade’s lack of production. After his 20-point, 19-rebound effort in Game 3, Bosh made seven of his first eight shots in Game 4. With Wade going 0 of5 from the field to begin the game — and 3 of 10 overall — the Heat needed Bosh to be on his game.

Said James: “When one guy goes down, another guy has to step up or the same guys just step up more, and we know that D-Wade is battling an injury right now and he’s nowhere near 100 percent, so everyone has to step up.”

Related stories from Miami Herald

david-j-neal

David J. Neal: Miami Heat must play matador and slay Chicago Bulls

May 15, 2013 12:01 AM

HOMEPAGE

Miami Heat blog | Heat Check

February 23, 2012 06:06 PM

  Comments  

Videos

Baby born on a JetBlue flight

The Cuban government didn’t allow a cruise ship from the Port of Palm Beach to dock in Havana Friday (IN SPANISH)

View More Video

Trending Stories

Military planes carrying 180 tons of aid for Venezuelans fly from Miami to Colombia

February 16, 2019 08:00 AM

Here are some of the worst mistakes immigrants make applying for legal papers

February 15, 2019 11:26 AM

Dolphins sign former second-round defensive end and a young cornerback

February 15, 2019 03:30 PM

‘Crazy chick’ didn’t want to sit next to a toddler on a plane. Then came the outburst.

February 15, 2019 03:28 PM

U.S. looks to send food aid to Haiti as violence brews humanitarian crisis

February 15, 2019 06:27 PM

Read Next

It needed overtime, but Palmer Trinity boys’ soccer will defend its state title

Miami-Dade High Schools

It needed overtime, but Palmer Trinity boys’ soccer will defend its state title

By Bill Daley Special to the Miami Herald

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 16, 2019 07:59 PM

An overtime goal from Nico Rey lifted the Palmer Trinity Falcons boys’ soccer team to a 2-1 win over Lakeland Christian to earn a berth in the Class 1A state title game in DeLand, Florida.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to the Miami Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE LATEST NEWS

For the first time in eight years, Varela boys’ soccer returns to state title game

Miami-Dade High Schools

For the first time in eight years, Varela boys’ soccer returns to state title game

February 16, 2019 07:56 PM
Police: Aurora attacker used gun he shouldn’t have owned

Latest News

Police: Aurora attacker used gun he shouldn’t have owned

February 16, 2019 06:42 PM
The Latest: CEO: Gunman passed background check when hired

Latest News

The Latest: CEO: Gunman passed background check when hired

February 16, 2019 06:05 PM
Military planes carrying 180 tons of aid for Venezuelans fly from Miami to Colombia

Venezuela

Military planes carrying 180 tons of aid for Venezuelans fly from Miami to Colombia

February 16, 2019 08:00 AM
‘Youngest customer to date.’ Baby boy born aboard a JetBlue flight to Fort Lauderdale

Broward County

‘Youngest customer to date.’ Baby boy born aboard a JetBlue flight to Fort Lauderdale

February 16, 2019 04:08 PM
Dolphins hire ex-Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie, the league’s 2016 executive of year

Miami Dolphins

Dolphins hire ex-Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie, the league’s 2016 executive of year

February 16, 2019 04:27 PM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Icon for mobile apps

Miami Herald App

View Newsletters

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
  • Public Insight Network
  • Reader Panel
Advertising
  • Place a Classified
  • Media Kit
  • Commercial Printing
  • Public Notices
Copyright
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story