Wade in ‘rebuild’ mode with his legs
WASHINGTON — Dwyane Wade said Friday if it looks as if his legs are lacking, it has nothing to do with his late decision to return for a 16th NBA season or because of his age. The Miami Heat’s all-time leading scorer said it merely is a fact of life this time of the preseason.
“No matter how hard you work in the summer,” Wade, 36, said, “there’s going to come a point in training camp where those legs are going to go. And everything you worked on doesn’t even matter. You’re going to have the rebuild it back.”
That is where Wade said he stands.
But he also said he stands in a better place than a year ago, when he was going through the preseason with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“I told someone I worked very hard in the summer [last year] and I got to training camp and the preseason and I actually feel better in these games than I did in the beginning of last year,” said Wade, who did not formally announce his return until 10 days before the start of camp. “I did enough, but as the preseason goes on you want to do more. So even now, on game days, I do more. I still do extra conditioning. I still do extra stuff in the weight room. I just continue the process of where I want to be by the first game.”
The Heat open their regular season Oct. 17 on the road against the Orlando Magic.
Wade said he is neither feeling his age nor the time he took off this summer.
“It’s been fine. I’m in good shape for the shape I’m in,” he said. “At this time of the year, there’s different levels you go to. So it hasn’t been a problem at all for me.”
But he also appreciates that age waits for no superstar.
“Yeah, you train differently,” he said. “You start focusing on different things from the standpoint of the year before, ‘What do you think you need to strengthen?’ So, for me, it’s always my body. How can I get my body strong enough? And the other things are going to come as the season goes on.”
As for his signature burger at his recently opened Aventura restaurant, Wade said his recent Instagram post will be the only place you’ll see the two together for a while.
“I’m not sneaking anything my last year,” he said of his commitment to conditioning.
“No matter how hard you work in the summer, there’s going to come a point in training camp where those legs are going to go.” —Dwyane Wade