Dwyane Wade was a bucket from the moment he came into the NBA — he was All-Rookie First Team, in that absolutely loaded 2003 draft class — but there was one glaring weakness in his game.
The man says as much himself! Appearing on Instagram Live with Steph Curry, Wade says that defences would sag off from the perimeter back when his jumper was a work in progress, and that it wasn’t until the day that Kobe Bryant picked him up full-court for the first time that he felt like he had finally earned some respect in the league.
Wade never did become much of a three-point shooter — he was below .300 from outside for his career — but in his second season, he added the midrange game that he would eventually be known for.
It’s just a nice wrinkle that Kobe, who Wade still displays as his Instagram profile photo (along with Kobe’s daughter Gianna), plays into the memory of when Wade first felt like he’d made it.
