Dwyane Wade And LeBron James Discussed Teaming Up In Chicago or New York

In the summer of 2010, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade changed the course of NBA free agency forever when they joined forces with the Miami Heat alongside Chris Bosh, starting the era of super teams and redefining individual player empowerment.

While on an episode of the Players’ Tribune’s Knuckleheads podcast, Wade said he never anticipated playing with James until that summer – despite a well-worn theory that the pair hatched the plan during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. But once he got the call from James and his then-agent Leon Rose that they were interested in teaming up, the two started figuring out which destination would be the best for both of them.

Wade said they considered Chicago, which in addition to having two max slots available for James and Wade, also had young talents like Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, and Joakim Noah on the roster. They also thought about playing together in New York.

Ultimately, the deciding factor came down to which team could accommodate not only the two of them, but also Chris Bosh, making Miami the only option.

“When it came down to it, Miami was the only team that had enough money to get all three of us,” Wade said. “Once it got to the point like, ‘Yo, CB is the perfect match’, ultimately, bro, I just wanted to win.”

Darius Miles and Quentin Richardson, the hosts of the podcast, are both from Illinois, and they sound legitimately heartbroken at the idea of the duo choosing not to play in Chicago, particularly Miles. However, the funniest part of this whole exchange is that Wade and James can never let Knicks fans rest. After James created a stir earlier this season when he said their final meeting had to take place at Staples Center or “the Garden”, the missed connections between the greatest player of his generation and New York just keep on coming. Rumor season is truly never-ending.