Dwyane Wade's new statue goes viral after the Miami Heat's unveiling, and there's more news from the NBA on Sunday

CNN
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Dwyane Wade's status as a Miami Heat legend was further cemented on Sunday when the franchise unveiled an eight-foot-tall statue of the three-time NBA champion.

Wade is the first player in Heat history to be immortalized with a statue outside the team's Kaseya Center. The bronze sculpture honors his iconic “This is my House” celebration from the double overtime win against the Chicago Bulls in 2009.

The 42-year-old played 16 seasons in the NBA and was named an All-Star 13 times before retiring in 2019. Wade ranks No. 1 in Heat history in points, assists and games played and is one of only two players to have been on all three of the franchise's title-winning teams.

Wade's distinguished career also earned him a place in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

“This is crazy. I can't believe that. Who is this guy?” Wade said as the statue was unveiled behind him.

It turned out that many fans were also asking the same question.

Some criticized the statue's resemblance to Wade and drew comparisons to the infamous bust of Cristiano Ronaldo, which was unveiled at Madeira Airport in 2017.

A comment on an Instagram video of the unveiling said the statue looked more like Laurence Fishburne's “Morpheus” from the film “The Matrix” than Wade.

However, Will Manso, a local reporter, later posted a close-up photo of the statue on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying it “looks much better than the pictures.”

For his part, however, Wade appeared to be in awe of the statue behind him as he delivered his speech.

“This is crazy,” he said. “I wanted to feel that. Life goes by so quickly and it is very rare that we feel anything because we are always on the way to the next thing.

“So I didn’t prepare much because I wanted to feel that, man. I wanted to take a look at it,” he added, turning back to admire the statue.

Miami's two-day Wade celebration continues Monday night when the Heat host the Detroit Pistons.

The Golden State Warriors are sweating over the health of franchise star Steph Curry, who was sidelined with an ankle injury in the 112-104 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Curry twisted his left ankle in the third quarter but returned to the game in the fourth quarter after receiving treatment on the bench. However, he ultimately left the competition after the injury re-aggravated and had to be helped back to the locker room by his teammates.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry described the injury as “mild to moderate” and added that he will undergo an MRI scan on Sunday.

“He’s obviously sprained that ankle a lot,” Kerr added. “He doesn’t think it’s that bad, but it’s a concern.”

Curry had 18 points, four rebounds, six assists and two steals before his exit, with Andrew Wiggins stepping up in his absence, scoring a game-high 29 points.

The Clippers, who improve to 2-1, had two players record double-doubles – James Harden had 23 points and 11 assists, while Ivica Zubac had 23 points and 18 rebounds.

Tyrese Maxey scored 45 points and led the Philadelphia 76ers to their first win of the season, defeating the Indiana Pacers 118-114 in an overtime thriller.

The Pacers appeared to be in control down the stretch, but three turnovers on three consecutive possessions opened the door for the Sixers to take a three-point lead.

But Tyrese Haliburton tied the game for the Pacers with an off-balance three-pointer with just three seconds left to send it to OT.

However, the Pacers never led again as Maxey scored 10 of his 45 points in OT.

It was a much-needed return to form for Maxey, who shot less than 30% in the first two games of the season as Philly continues to struggle with the absence of franchise star Joel Embiid and new signing Paul George.

Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 22 points, but still appears to be far from last season's form.

Away at home (winners in bold)

Philadelphia 76ers 118-114(OT) Indiana Pacers

Los Angeles Clippers 112-104 Golden State Warriors

Milwaukee Bucks 102-115 Brooklyn Nets

New Orleans Pelicans 103-125 Portland Trail Blazers

Atlanta Hawks 104-128 Oklahoma City Thunder