Dwyane Tyrone Wade, Jr. (born January 17, 1982), nicknamed Flash or D-Wade, is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Miami Heat of the NBA. Named the 2006 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, Wade has established himself as one of the most well-known and popular players in the league. He had the top selling jersey in the NBA for nearly two years, as he led the NBA in jersey sales from the 2005 NBA Playoffs, until the midpoint of the 2006–07 season.[1] His first name is pronounced /dwɛɪn/, the same as the more common spellings "Duane" and "Dwayne".[2]
After entering the league as the fifth pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, Wade was named to the All-Rookie team and the All-Star team the following ten seasons. In his third season, Wade led the Miami Heat to their first NBA championship in franchise history. He was named the 2006 NBA Finals MVP as the Heat won the series 4-2 over the Dallas Mavericks. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Wade led the United States men's basketball team, commonly known as the "Redeem Team", in scoring, as they captured gold medal honors in Beijing, China. In the 2008–09 season, Wade led the league in scoring and earned his first NBA scoring title.