Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Wade’s return sparks energy for fans, teammates at AAA
Heat have won 11 of 12 at home since guard’s return
MIAMI — Dwyane Wade brushed it off as coincidence. But the numbers speak otherwise.
In the wake of the Miami Heat’s latest home success, Thursday’s 103-92 victory over the Chicago Bulls, forward Justise Winslow said there is a simple reason AmericanAirlines Arena again has become the team’s ally.
“Getting D-Wade back, he brought a lot of energy to the arena,” Winslow said of the reunion with the franchise icon at the Feb. 8 NBA trading deadline. “I think especially us young guys, we’re feeding off that energy that the crowd is bringing.”
Wade took the comment more as flattery than fact. “That’s kind of him,” he said. It’s also true. Since Wade was acquired from the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Heat have won 11 of 12 home games, the only blemish a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
“I’m definitely not going to take
credit for that,” Wade said, having missed a pair of the home victories with a hamstring strain. “I just feel like we’re playing well at home. We’ve got a very deep team. I think everybody plays their role. We have a lot of confidence in this building. I’m definitely not going to take credit for all that.”
Still, the Heat’s eight-game home winning streak matches their longest since they won nine in a row at home, from Jan. 6 to March 24, 2013, during Wade’s previous tenure with the team.
The difference is the Heat were in championship mode back then, with Wade alongside LeBron James and Chris Bosh. Now, on the cusp of a playoff berth, the reality is they will play as a road team during the postseason, making each home game all the more significant.
“We kind of flip flopped,” Winslow said. “Early in the year we weren’t playing that well at home and we were winning on the road. It’s kind of switched.
“It’s going to be tough to win a seven-game series, not looking like we’re going to have home court. We’ve got to be better on the road, try to steal a game and protect home court. These games are important to us, just continue to build those habits every day and try to be at the top of our game come playoffs.”
Wade said it is not surprising that the Heat have shown the most growth at home, still with just one road victory since Jan. 29.
“A lot of teams,” Wade said, “when you’re not at the top, you’re a different team at home than you are on the road. The teams that are championship teams, that have won championships, that have been there, they’re pretty consistent. The teams that are trying to build, they are better at home than they are on the road, for the most part.
“I definitely think on the road, our game travels. We play good games on the road. We play close games on the road. We’ve just got to do a little bit more to figure out ways to win because the teams we’re playing play very well at home.”
That doesn’t mean that Wade doesn’t embrace the return affection each time he reports to the scorers’ table.
“I definitely love the energy that’s been building,” he said, with the Heat’s four-game homestand continuing tonight against the Brooklyn Nets before concluding Tuesday against the Atlanta Hawks. “Each game, there’s excitement in this building. I wasn’t here [at the beginning of the season], so I don’t know. This is all I know. So it’s good. Our fans have been amazing. So this definitely helps.”
To Winslow, with the season winding down and the opportunity to clinch a playoff berth on Saturday, the focus remains winning anywhere against anyone.
“We’re trying to win every game. That’s what this organization is about,” he said. “We’re not too focused on who our opponent is going to be, but we are trying to win every game, almost like college, try to get hot at the right time and go from there.”