Dwyane Wade explains how Big 3 almost didn’t happen

One of the most successful eras not only in Miami Heat history, but in recent NBA History, was the Big 3 era with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. The trio went on to clinch four Eastern Conference Titles and, most importantly, two NBA Titles in 2012 and 2013.

What made that summer so fascinating wasn’t just the basketball fit—it was how much the stars had to weigh behind the scenes. During this same free agency frenzy, teams were throwing everything they could at top-tier players. Whether it was championship hopes or tempting perks (kind of like snagging free spins no deposit deals when everything seems too good to be true), the pressure on big names like Bosh to decide wasn’t small.

However, over a decade after the era concluded in 2014, Wade, the greatest player in Heat franchise history, recently outlined how it almost didn’t happen after Bosh was initially hesitant.

“Once Chris Bosh got a chance to come out here, everybody was like throwing flowers at his feet. He wavered a couple times, we didn’t know if he was going to be a part of the opportunity for us to play together,” he said recently on the Pardon My Take podcast. “And I think the Heat did a great job of keeping, once again, their cards close to their chest because we knew going into that summer that each team that was in position can get two star players, that everyone wanted two star players.

“Then, [the Miami Heat] came out of nowhere was like, ‘Hey, we can get three.’ And so I think it changed something for us. We all had a conversation about and we realized we would like to play together.“

Wade, a 13-time All-Star and eight-time All-NBA honoree, mentioned that he and James would have conversations about not knowing if Bosh was fully committed because of how other teams approached Bosh’s free agency. Though Wade also had questions about whether James, who spent his first seven seasons with his hometown Cavaliers, was completely bought in.

He also mentioned that if James and Wade were to play together with a third co-star, Bosh’s inclusion was vital.

“Once we committed to play together, it was really important who that third person was,” Wade said. “And we knew that if we were going to do this, that Chris Bosh was the choice. There wasn’t another option from the standpoint that this was our first option just because [James and I’s] talents was already together, it was hard to envision how we were both going to be successful at the same time because we’re both ball dominant players. And you need someone else to relieve that, and Chris Bosh was the reliever in that for us more than [Amar’e Stoudemire] and [Carlos Boozer].”

Bosh ultimately was the perfect third piece, averaging 17.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and one block in a tertiary role in those three years and eventually extended his shooting range to help create more space for James and Wade, two of the league’s best athletes at the time.

It’s always interesting hearing these stories and how it all came together. There’s likely more detail that we will never know, but what we do know is that this was one of the most successful cores this century, despite the unfortunate end.

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