NBA Rumors: Dwyane Wade Reveals Why He And LeBron James Chose Not To Team Up With Derrick Rose In 2010
In the 2010 NBA offseason, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade were given the opportunity to turn their dream of playing together on the same team into a reality. As unrestricted free agents, James and Wade decided to form the Miami Heat’s “Big Three” with Chris Bosh. However, before they officially signed a contract with the Heat, James and Wade had another free agency destination in mind — the Chicago Bulls.
According to Essentially Sports, both James and Wade had expressed interest in joining the Bulls in 2010, but due to salary cap restrictions, Chicago couldn’t afford to bring Bosh along with them. Even without Bosh, James and Wade could still have formed a “Big Three” on the Bulls since, at that time, the team had Derrick Rose who they selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 Draft. However, Wade and James didn’t think that teaming up with Rose would make sense since, like the two of them, he also needed the ball in his hands to be effective on the court.
“So you’re already talking two guys who are ball-dominant. And then you have a young up-and-coming star in the league who is ball-dominant,” Wade said. “At that time, I don’t think it would’ve worked out for us. We took our two ball-dominant selves away from having three guys as ball-dominant. So instead of it being me, LeBron and Derrick Rose, it’s going to be a tough one. So we decided to pick what we thought was better from a basketball standpoint.”
Wade definitely has a point. The trio of James, Wade, and Rose would undeniably look good on paper, but it remains a big question mark if they could efficiently play together. Unlike Rose, Bosh could excel in an off-ball capacity, making him the ideal teammate for James and Wade.
Though it took some time before they found their rhythm and built good chemistry in Miami, the Heat’s “Big Three” of James, Wade, and Bosh were considered a huge success. They made four straight appearances in the NBA Finals and won back-to-back championship titles in 2012 and 2013. However, like most superteams, the Heat’s “Big Three” wasn’t built to last.
As of now, Wade and Bosh are already retired, while James is still chasing his fourth NBA championship title with the Los Angeles Lakers. Meanwhile, though he managed to win Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player awards, Rose is yet to win his first championship ring and is currently playing for one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons.
