Wade marvels at how James is stepping up

Lakers ‘one of the top teams’ in West in Year 1 with LeBron

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LOS ANGELES —With Monday night Dwyane Wade’s final appearance at Staples Center as well as his final game against close friend and former championship teammate LeBron James, what is not lost on the Miami Heat guard is how James is thriving in a 16th season of his own and first with the Los Angeles Lakers.

“I mean, I’m so used to him being efficient. Like when he was in Miami, I think he shot like 60-something percent from the field for a season,” Wade said, with James actually topping out at 57 percent during two of his four Heat seasons. “So, from that standpoint, I know the caliber of player he is, the work he puts in, the IQ he has of the game, all of that.

“I think the thing is how quickly — and they’re going to grow so much more — but how quickly he’s been able to get this team turned around early in the season, to get them where they’re one of the top teams in the West and knowing that they’re going to continue to grow.”

Wade said James’ mentorship is a powerful statement about the value of experience.

“So that’s just incredible for him to come into this organization, with younger players, and being able to get them to understand how they need to play and try to be more consistent with it,” he said after the Heat’s Monday morning shootaround at UCLA.

James said it clearly was not a typical regular-season night.

“We both came in the league 16 years ago, and to see it come to an end as far as us playing either alongside one another or against each other coming to an end, there’s definitely a lot of emotions,” he said after the Lakers’ morning shootaround.

James knew there would be a jersey exchange, especially after Wade missed the Nov. 18 game between the teams at AmericanAirlines Arena, when Wade was in Los Angeles following the birth of his daughter, a night James scored 51 points.

“It actually started off with just our brotherhood and then it took a life of its own,” James said of the jersey exchange. “It’s been pretty cool to see what he’s been doing throughout the season.”

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called the buzz leading to the game palpable.

“You’re talking about generational Hall of Fame players,” he said. “That’s the type of buzz those kind of guys create, when you have them playing against each other, competing against each other.

“That’s what everybody wants to see, fans and organizations alike.

“You always want to see, most importantly, that guys aren’t playing buddy ball out there. These guys don’t. They go after each other.”

Ellington back: Guard Wayne Ellington was back with the Heat after missing the previous two games following the passing of his maternal grandmother, Elaine Stanford, who was 88.

“She played a huge role for me,” he said. “I actually spent a lot of time at her house. Whenever my mom was at work when I was a kid, that’s where I spent most of my summers and things like that. So she was huge for me. It’s unfortunate, but she lived a full life. She left an amazing impact on all of us.

“So it’s more of a celebration at this point celebrating her life.”

Ellington previously had flown home days earlier to Philadelphia to spend time with his grandmother before returning for the Heat’s Dec. 4 game against the Orlando Magic.

“She was asking for me and then literally I got to see her for about 45 minutes,” he said.

Whiteside has a son:

became parent to a son on Sunday, his first child. He has yet to rejoin the team ... Heat forward

was a finalist for Eastern Conference Player of the Week that went Monday to Washington Wizards guard