Wade says he had to try out for 2008 U.S. Olympic team
For those who watched the men's basketball tournament at the 2008 Summer Olympics, it's hard to forget about Dwyane Wade, who terrorized any international team that came his way.
But according to the Miami Heat star, his participation wasn't guaranteed.
"I had to try out for the Olympic team," said Wade, according to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. "A lot of people don't know that. I had to try out a couple times that summer."
USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo refuted Wade's recollection of the process, pointing to Wade's health as the reason for the perceived auditions.
"He was out for an extended period of time. We didn't know where he was physically," Colangelo said. "And then we started monitoring him physically. He was with (trainer) Tim Grover in Chicago. I went to see him practice, and he still wasn't 100 percent. And we had to make a decision and we went with him."
Wade led the Heat to an NBA title in 2006 as Finals MVP, but he was plagued by injuries the following two seasons and only appeared in 102 games over that span.
This 2008 Olympic Team 🔥🔥🔥 Kobe, Wade and LeBron put on a show https://t.co/OlseYzwoYN
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) December 21, 2018
Whatever the reasoning, the extra scrutiny motivated Wade.
"It just drove me, man. It was so many question marks and rightfully so," he said. "I wasn't the same player. They questioned whether I would get back to that level, that Olympic level. And I wanted to prove that and show them. I did that the whole summer. I carried that chip on my shoulder the whole way.
"You can ask anybody on that Olympic team. I really wasn't the giddy, outgoing D-Wade. I was really to myself, really focused on, 'I'm in this mentality and I'm not getting out of it for nobody at no time.'"
It ended up working out for Wade, who came off the bench for a star-studded roster that featured LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. He put on a show, eventually notching a team-high 27 points in their gold-medal matchup against Spain.
"He was electrifying," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. "It wasn't about being the best player. He stole the moments. He was must-see TV. The moments you remember, with his plays and the bald head, it was all of it."
The win helped the U.S. reclaim the top spot in international men's basketball after Wade and Co. settled for bronze in 2004.