NBA rivalries have a way of pushing players to their limits, and Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul had plenty of battles over the years. Skills aside, the matches between Wade and Paul were fiery, too! With Wade being one of the best shooting guards and Paul being one of the best defense players there’s ever been, their head-to-heads were truly like when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object! Though Wade has stepped away from the game over time, Paul is still trying to show why he’s known as the “point god”! How so?
Well, in the recent Spurs vs Raptors game, he ended up making history! He’s now the first player ever to start his team’s first 70 games in his 20th season or later. Crazy, right? Most guys don’t even last that long, let alone play every single game. Moreover, with Victor Wembanyama out for the rest of the year, he is the backbone of the team. He is 40 years old, and he is still in a shape that’s good enough to allow him to be this active!
Recently, during his podcast, Dwyane Wade took the chance to remember his matches against Chris Paul. He knew that getting the ball through Paul’s defense would be no easy task, so he instead used another strategy. Instead of out-skilling him, Wade used physicality to rattle him. “CP is a little loose up there,” Wade said. “I’m coming through that screen with an elbow bam! Give me the ball.” That is how he would force CP3 to defend differently.
And that’s where it gets interesting. Paul is known for getting his “lick back,” meaning he won’t let a hit slide. That often leads to more contact, and suddenly, opponents are at the free-throw line. In Wade’s words, “I’m going to get to the free throw line, ‘cause he’s going to come to get his lick back!”. DWade knew that there was no other way to get to CP. Even bigger size wouldn’t stop him as “Everybody been bigger than him his whole life. He used to it.”
Oct 28, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Former Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade is honored at halftime during the game against the Detroit Pistons at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Rhona Wise-Imagn Images
Could this be a hidden flaw in Paul’s game? If teams start using Wade’s trick, could it throw Paul off? Well, it might not work as intended after Paul hears Wade’s statement.
The time Chris Paul almost ended up in Miami Heats
Basketball history is full of ‘what if’ moments, but few are as intriguing as Chris Paul’s almost-move to the Miami Heat. Last year, Dwyane Wade dropped a revelation that could have reshaped the NBA.
During a casual sit-down with Paul, Wade brought up an old conversation. “Do you remember the call with Bron, you and I?” he asked. Paul’s response was a simple but telling, “You talking about Miami?” That one trade could have turned Miami’s Big Three into an unstoppable Big Four.
Back in 2011, the Heat already had LeBron James, Wade, and Chris Bosh dominating the league. Adding Paul, one of the best point guards ever, would have made them nearly unbeatable. Pat Riley, the mastermind behind the Heat’s success, wanted the deal to happen. Even Paul himself was on board. “We was talking about me coming to Miami,” Paul admitted. “We was talking about who gonna have the ball in their hands, how it’s going to work.” The only problem? A jersey number.
It was a simple but surprising obstacle—both Wade and Paul wore No. 3. Paul’s brother, CJ, asked, “Who gonna wear number 3?” And just like that, silence filled the room. That small detail ultimately derailed a potential dynasty.
Miami still won two championships, but the dream of a Big Four faded. Paul moved on to the Clippers and later bounced between teams. Now, as a veteran playing alongside Stephen Curry, he can only imagine what could have been.
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