Dwyane Wadse’ legendary status with the Miami Heat reached new heights on Sunday when the team revealed an eight-foot statue of the three-time NBA champion.
Wade is the first player in Heat history to be honored with a statue outside the Kaseya Center, with the bronze piece capturing his iconic ‘This is my house’ celebration from a thrilling 2009 double-overtime win against the Chicago Bulls.
Over his 16-season NBA career, Wade was a 13-time All-Star and retired in 2019, leading in Heat history for points, assists, and games played. He is also one of only two players who contributed to all three of the Heat’s championship teams and was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
When the statue was revealed, Wade expressed disbelief, joking, “That’s crazy. I can’t believe that. Who is that guy?”
However, some fans criticized the statue’s resemblance to Wade, with some comparing it to the famous Crtiano Ronaldois bust at Madeira Airport in 2017. One Instagram user even remarked that it looked more like Laurence Fishburne’s character, Morpheus, from *The Matrix* than Wade.
Local reporter Will Manso later shared a close-up photo of the statue on X (formerly Twitter), saying it “looks much better than in pictures.”
Wade, visibly moved, paused during his speech to admire the statue, saying, “This is crazy… I wanted to feel this, man. I wanted to look at it.”
Miami’s tribute to Wade will continue Monday night as the Heat face the Detroit Pistons.
