Chris Webber likes how Heat are using aging Wade
Chris Webber knows what it's like for an aging superstar to transform his game - and consequently, his psyche - in order to maximize team success during the twilight of an illustrious career.
The former NBA great, and current TNT analyst, was asked to share his thoughts on how some teams utilize their star veterans who qualify as senior citizens in a league dominated by youthful talent.
Webber - who wrapped his storied 15-year career in 2008 - used Miami Heat icon Dwyane Wade as an example of how franchises should implement their older but still valuable contributors, while still maintaining team progress, and not jeopardizing the player's legacy. The five-time All-Star illustrated how Heat president Pat Riley has been able to build a contender around the likes of Wade, Chris Bosh, and other reputable players on the wrong side of 30, while still bringing in prospects to learn from them.
"I think whatever a team does, it's not only a rebuilding of expectations, it's rebuilding of mentality," Webber said. "And I think what's great about this Miami team is you know it's a Pat Riley team. And even if it's to build around these guys until you find those new superstars to be ushered in, rookies that come in as high picks, they'd love to have a Dwyane Wade or a guy that's done it to be their mentors."
To further his point, Webber drew upon two other veteran-laden teams - the San Antonio Spurs, and Los Angeles Lakers - and their most notable stars, as examples of how aging franchise faces are employed, successful or not.
"It's the difference between, let's say, Kobe Bryant and a Tim Duncan," Webber said. "What they're going through is that Tim Duncan is still a staple, a part of his team, but he doesn't have to do it every night. So his role has changed."
Although the 39-year-old Duncan is still an integral component of his team's system, Webber pointed out that Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich no longer has the same pressure to play Duncan as much as he used to. The three-time NBA Finals MVP is averaging the lowest amount of playing time (27.6 minutes per game) in his 19-year career this season.
The need for Popovich to lean less on the future Hall of Famer is, of course, a function of the Spurs' revamped roster - one that now features two additional former All-Star big men, in LaMarcus Aldridge, and David West.
The Lakers, according to Webber, do not have the same luxury as San Antonio.
"Kobe hasn't been afforded that (support)," Webber said of Los Angeles' quickly-aging superstar.
Bryant's historic inefficiency this season has been well-documented, with Lakers coach Byron Scott shouldering the lion's share of the blame for the way he has unleashed "The Black Mamba."
Related: Byron Scott is a walking contradiction
Webber sees the Heat's handling of Wade as being closer to that of the Spurs with Duncan. The Michigan alumnus views the way Wade has quietly remained Miami's still-impactful centerpiece, on a team that's competitive in a much-improved East, as perhaps the new prototype for contending while also revamping an aging core.
"If you have championship pedigree with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, I would absolutely keep them and let them play until the wheels fall off," Webber said.