In professional sports, one of the biggest honors a player can receive is to have his or her jersey retired, which Dwyane Wade will experience next month.
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel newspaper, Wade’s No. 3 jersey will be retired at the Heat’s AmericanAirlines Arena on Feb. 22 when the Heat take on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Besides having the jersey retirement ceremony at the game, the Heat will also hold a celebration for Wade at AmericanAirlines Arena on Feb. 21, since the team is off that night.
On Friday, Jan. 3, Wade posted a message from his former Heat teammate Chris Bosh about the honor. Bosh had his No. 1 jersey retired in March 2019, years after he had to stop playing due to having a pulmonary embolism.
“Almost like we planned it this way,” Bosh told Wade in his message. “Congrats bro. Can’t wait for our jerseys to hang together.”
Bosh and Wade were part of the Heat’s big three, which also included LeBron James. And the three stars helped the team win back-to-back NBA championships in 2012 and 2013.
Wade retired at the end of the 2018-2019 season after joining the Heat in 2003. And with the help of Shaquille O’Neal, he pushed the Heat to their first championship in 2006.
Wade was a member of Marquette University’s basketball team before coming to the NBA, and the school retired his No. 3 jersey in 2006.
After news of Wade’s Heat jersey being retired surfaced, many of his fans said it’s extremely well-deserved.
“Happy NYE and congrats. Can’t wait to see the retirement ceremony. Can’t be there in person but good to see your jersey up there next to Heat greats,” someone wrote on Instagram.
Others said they expect the ceremony to be pretty very emotional.
“Wade’s jersey is being retired by HEAT on Feb. 22… Get ur onions ready folks 😭,” one person stated.
After Wade’s jersey hangs from the rafters, he’ll be the fifth Heat player to receive such an honor, after Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, O’Neal and Bosh had their jerseys retired.
