NBA Miami Heat

Maintenance No Longer The Plan For Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade

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By @blackirishpr

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The concept of maintenance plans may have very well started in San Antonio, but the strategy’s unreliable stigma was stamped down in South Beach. The main reason being that the Miami Heat rested Dwyane Wade for a third of the season only to have him sputter out at the very end of the playoffs.

Yes, Wade displayed the athleticism and explosiveness to push past the Indiana Pacers, but playing well in the Eastern Conference Finals was not the goal for a championship-or-bust type of season. So there is no way that anyone could deem his lethargic kneed collapse in the next round a success.

In turn, there is little wonder why fans become nervous when Erik Spoelstra dances around questions about an experiment that both Wade and his teammates — past and present — have expressed being uncomfortable with. Though if you talk to the 11-year shooting guard, he will give you a more definitive answer:

“My goal is to be available every day for my teammates and see what that equals out to. Hopefully it equals out to success for myself, individually, but for our team.” (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

Wade’s quote shows just how hard it is to convince a veteran that has been on top of his game for nearly a decade to take time off, especially after the world already saw that approach fail.

You can only imagine that this is the reason Los Angeles Lakers coach Byron Scott backtracked (“I’m expecting him to play 82 games”) on saying that Kobe Bryant may have to rest for a few games.

Alpha male personalities will likely never accept overly-precautious sitting — and no, Tim Duncan is not an alpha personality. He’s an elite player who makes it work for him. It’s sort of like the way Danny Granger will attempt to relive his old status by becoming a resting success.

Apparently he believes the maintenance program is exactly what he needs for his knees to get stronger after two repairs and “minor” arthroscopic surgery. It’s the yin and the yang of this year’s Heat roster. Thankfully for fans, Wade and his weight loss seem on track for a long season on the court.

Richard Nurse is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @blackirishpr or add him to your network on Google.

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