Wade, Shaq share memories of Kobe during TNT special
These were sad and surreal circumstances for Dwyane Wade to begin his broadcasting career, sitting in a chair on the Staples Center court, sitting alongside his somber TNT colleagues, reflecting on the life of his friend Kobe Bryant just two days after his shocking death in a helicopter accident.
And Wade handled the moment with poise and grace, offering from-theheart insight.
There was “one person I wanted respect from and it was Kobe Bryant,” Wade said on the TNT set before the Heat-Celtics game. “I think I’ve been in shock for two days and this is the first moment it actually feels real. I’m shaking. I’m numb.”
O’Neal — a former teammate of Bryant and Wade — cried on the TNT set: “I haven’t felt pain that sharp in a while,” O’Neal said.
Wade, who signed with TNT in October, debuted under shocking and tragic circumstances, sitting alongside longtime TNT commentators O’Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson. It was raw and riveting television.
Wade said even if he hadn’t retired, he wouldn’t have been able to play a game on Sunday.
“I was talking to coach Spo [Erik Spoelstra] today about the team in Miami and how those guys were doing,” Wade said on TNT’s postgame show.
“He said the cloud over everybody was dark. I said, ‘Listen, this was the first day since I’ve retired that actually I wish I was in practice with you guys, actually wish I was on the court, wish I was able to smile and enjoy the game that I knew my friend enjoyed. I would have been talking a lot of stuff. It’s what I felt today. Sunday, I couldn’t get out of bed.”
Wade said what stood out about Bryant “was his way with people. Kobe had this ability to make you feel like you were the only person in the room when he talked to you. One of my favorite things about Kobe was the way he made my kids feel, whenever he comes around, the way he made [Wade’s son] Zaire feel.
“One of my favorite moments was his last All-Star Game [in 2016]. My son was on the court, rebounding for us. He said, ‘Zaire come down here.’ Zaire looks at me, like nervous, should I go. I said, ‘You better go get your Kobe moment.’ He took that time. Every time he saw Zaire, Kobe took that time. All of us sitting up here know how important it is for kids for someone they admire to make them feel special. He did that every time and that’s my favorite part about
Kobe.”
Wade recalled the “first time I met him was my rookie season in the NBA [200304]. My three favorite players were Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant. Ten games into my rookie season, we played the Lakers on this court — Shaq, Kobe, Gary Payton, Karl Malone.
“I told him this story at the 2016 All-Star Game, in that [2003] game, in the fourth quarter, I got an opportunity to guard him for the first time, in transition, I was scared as hell.”
Wade stole the ball and hit a floater.
“I thought I cannot believe what just happened,” Wade said. “It meant the world I got to play against one of my idols, have a moment against one of my idols.
“Next year, Shaq got traded to Miami. And Kobe and I got pitted against each other. I said no, this is one of my favorite players. Every time we played each other, I had to act like I didn’t care… He falls, don’t help him up. That was hard because I grew up wanting to be like him.”
Wade spoke of their relationship blooming as teammates in the 2008 Olympics.
Wade said in the aftermath of Bryant’s death, “I talked to LeBron [James] a lot and obviously he’s torn up. I asked him, ‘if you were in my seat, what would you say tonight?’ His message was ‘the media always tries to put myself, you and other guys that were good at this game against Kobe.
“What they don’t know is all of us were trying to do our very best to make him proud of us, make him respect us.’ All we want to do is win so we can be on Kobe’s level . ... That’s what he meant to this generation, a player such as
LeBron, myself and so many others... This is a brotherhood, and Kobe was the leader of that brotherhood. He stopped the Earth for a day. That’s how powerful he was.”
O’Neal, 47, said Bryant’s death, at 41, hurts even more because Shaq had just lost his younger sister Ayesha to cancer in October.
“Now I lost a little brother,” Shaq said. “Our names will always be attached together. We lost probably the world’s greatest Laker and world’s greatest basketball player.”
A few hours before the crash, Bryant text-messaged Shaq’s 20-year-old son, Shareef, to see how he was doing.
On both his podcast and on TNT’s set on Tuesday, O’Neal said his relationship with Bryant should not be misunderstood. They won three championships together as Lakers teammates (2000-2002).
“I know some idiot’s gonna bring up the relationship me and Kobe had,” O’Neal said. “Our relationship was that of brothers.”
Barry Jackson: 305-376-3491, @flasportsbuzz